In the past when Taiwan's diplomatic personnel returned to Taipei for routine consultations, they behaved as if they were vacationing. They wined and dined, filling up their stomachs while emptying out their heads, before going abroad again. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs recently changed this practice. The ministry rounded up all of its diplomats back in town for routine consultations and herded them into one-week seminars. The diplomats heard some tough talk from Secretary-General of the Presidential Office Chen Shih-meng (
Diplomacy is challenging work to begin with. Due to Taiwan's unique circumstances, enhanced flexibility is needed. But the foreign ministry is plagued by conservativism. Personnel who came up through the ranks under the KMT administration have proven to be stumbling blocks to the DPP's diplomatic efforts. Given that the bulk of the diplomats' work overseas involves dealing with visitors from Taiwan, newcomers quickly lose their enthusiasm. How can individuals with this kind of morale and mentality handle the intensive diplomatic combat needed to counteract China's efforts to constrain Taiwan?
Two years ago the people chose a new navigator, who has taken the country in a new direction. But the ministry's personnel have not kept pace. As a result, the Presidential Office is bypassing the ministry and giving the responsibility for overseeing some foreign affairs to the National Security Council. Actually, the Chen administration is following former president Lee Teng-hui's (
Breaking down the out-dated foreign-affairs mentality is key for the DPP. China is central to Taiwan's diplomacy. Chen Shih-meng's statement that "the two sides of Taiwan Strait are not Siamese twins, but fraternal twins" neatly summed up the historical ties and the independent sovereignties of the two sides of the Strait. His comment should also serve as a wake-up call to those diplomatic personnel blinded by the "Great China" myth.
Given the disparity in their sizes, Taiwan will surely lose out to China under traditional rules. So any hope of victory can only come through unconventional means, the kind of street-fighting strategy the DPP used to beat the KMT. Chiou was the mastermind of the those strategies. He advocates an offensive strategy, more overseas travel by senior ministers -- who face less restrictions than the president, vice president or premier -- and standing up for Taiwan's rights. Only through such methods can Taiwan avoid the kind of bullying it has been subjected to at APEC and the UN in the past.
But an even more fundamental problem hampering diplomacy is a lack of agreement on a national identity and the unification-independence debate. Taiwan's political parties have all demonstrated an inability to place national interests above their own. PFP Chairman James Soong (
The gutting of Voice of America (VOA) and Radio Free Asia (RFA) by US President Donald Trump’s administration poses a serious threat to the global voice of freedom, particularly for those living under authoritarian regimes such as China. The US — hailed as the model of liberal democracy — has the moral responsibility to uphold the values it champions. In undermining these institutions, the US risks diminishing its “soft power,” a pivotal pillar of its global influence. VOA Tibetan and RFA Tibetan played an enormous role in promoting the strong image of the US in and outside Tibet. On VOA Tibetan,
Sung Chien-liang (宋建樑), the leader of the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) efforts to recall Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lee Kun-cheng (李坤城), caused a national outrage and drew diplomatic condemnation on Tuesday after he arrived at the New Taipei City District Prosecutors’ Office dressed in a Nazi uniform. Sung performed a Nazi salute and carried a copy of Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf as he arrived to be questioned over allegations of signature forgery in the recall petition. The KMT’s response to the incident has shown a striking lack of contrition and decency. Rather than apologizing and distancing itself from Sung’s actions,
US President Trump weighed into the state of America’s semiconductor manufacturing when he declared, “They [Taiwan] stole it from us. They took it from us, and I don’t blame them. I give them credit.” At a prior White House event President Trump hosted TSMC chairman C.C. Wei (魏哲家), head of the world’s largest and most advanced chip manufacturer, to announce a commitment to invest US$100 billion in America. The president then shifted his previously critical rhetoric on Taiwan and put off tariffs on its chips. Now we learn that the Trump Administration is conducting a “trade investigation” on semiconductors which
By now, most of Taiwan has heard Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an’s (蔣萬安) threats to initiate a vote of no confidence against the Cabinet. His rationale is that the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP)-led government’s investigation into alleged signature forgery in the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) recall campaign constitutes “political persecution.” I sincerely hope he goes through with it. The opposition currently holds a majority in the Legislative Yuan, so the initiation of a no-confidence motion and its passage should be entirely within reach. If Chiang truly believes that the government is overreaching, abusing its power and targeting political opponents — then
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