Taipei Times: Nauru's recent defection cut the number of countries recognizing Taipei instead of Beijing to 27, triggering concern that Taipei's remaining allies might follow suit, as China consolidates its economic and political power. What's your take on this?
Eugene Chien (
Ties between Taiwan and its allies are defined by friendly mutual cooperation. Numerous collaborative projects have facilitated development among our allies and have been mutually beneficial, so much so that it would not be easy for China to come between us.
Moreover, it is my understanding that this incident has prompted much discussion within China. Due to China's rapid economic growth in recent years, Beijing has continuously projected itself as a major power. The nation's elite students and diplomats have had misgivings about Beijing's use of resources in the handling of its foreign relations.
While some in Taiwan have pointed out the disadvantages of "dollar diplomacy," I would like to believe that people in China, though under communist rule, would harbor similar suspicions. After all, that country's gross national product per capita remains extremely low. To spend such a large amount (US$137 million) on Nauru amounts in practice to "dollar diplomacy."
It is surprising that a nation with a population of around 1.3 billion could go so far as to claim that it really took pride in its "diplomatic coup" of luring into its fold a country with a population of around 10,000. The people of China, especially the elite, will think twice about this rhetoric.
TT: Taiwan has accused China of practicing "dollar diplomacy" in the case of Nauru. But Taiwan has recently confirmed reports that the country had promised to give US$10 million in aid to its allies Haiti and Panama over the next few years. So both Taipei and Beijing use cash as an instrument of foreign policy. How can Taiwan justify doing so?
Chien: We can analyze the issue from various perspectives. The first dimension is the purpose of the move in diplomatic terms. In order to safeguard our sovereignty and national dignity, Taiwan has to maintain a certain number of diplomatic allies. China, a giant state, has diplomatic ties with hundreds of nations. Beijing's huge expenditure is aimed at eliminating the Republic of China. I don't think China, with its population of around 1.3 billion, can really benefit in any concrete terms from forging ties with a country of only 10,000 people. Its only purpose is to destroy our country.
Secondly, Taiwan takes measures to help our allies tackle problems related to the livelihoods of people and economic development. This is reasonable in light of the aid Taiwan enjoyed from the US as it was developing. It's now time for us to give back to the global community. Budgets for Taiwan's aid programs have been approved by the legislature. China's aid is another story. The cash flow from China is not as transparent as that from Taiwan. And sometimes China spends time and effort on [foreign] politicians, a move absolutely unhelpful to the livelihoods of people.
Third, as far as the duration of aid is concerned, Taiwan has offered aid for fixed terms, normally quite a long period of time, such as four to five years. We want to help our friends for more than just a day and we are not interested merely in establishing ties for their own sake. China's practice, however, is largely short-term. And in some instances, China has failed to keep its promises.
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