There have been reports that the nation’s relationships with Latin American nations might be at risk following the Gambia’s decision to restore formal diplomatic relations with China.
The incoming Democratic Progressive Party government of president-elect Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) could face the question: How do we consolidate relations with the nation’s diplomatic allies?
Since China has a history of trying to chip away at Taiwanese morale by trying to poach the nation’s diplomatic allies, consolidating diplomatic relations becomes an important task regardless of which party runs the nation.
However, there are several reasons to question whether this point of view is in the best interests of the nation and its people.
First, none of Taiwan’s diplomatic allies have great influence on Taiwan’s interests, while the US and Japan are among the nations with which Taiwan — while not having formal diplomatic relations — has substantial relations.
Most Taiwanese are not familiar with the nation’s diplomatic allies, whose main function is to help propose UN membership for Taiwan and to prove that Taiwan is a sovereign, independent state.
However, Taiwan cannot become a UN member through the applications submitted by a small group of nations. If maintaining diplomatic relations means maintaining a certain level of “money diplomacy,” it would be a weak relationship that could easily allow China to pry diplomatic allies away from Taiwan by offering more benefits.
Furthermore, would the number of diplomatic allies affect whether Taiwan is a sovereign and independent state? That status is based on having a permanent population, a defined territory, a government and the capacity to enter into relations with other states. Taiwan has been holding presidential elections since 1996 and recognition by other nations is not a requirement for sovereignty. It is not necessary to use the number of diplomatic allies that have no bearing on the nation’s sovereignty as evidence of its status as a sovereign and independent nation.
A third reason is that the best way to guarantee the nation’s security would be the democratization of China rather than a battle over diplomatic recognition. Again, the number of diplomatic allies does not affect whether Taiwan is a sovereign and independent state.
In a time of globalization, the question of how to develop substantive trade relations with other nations is far more important than formal diplomatic relations. In addition, China would not give up its ambition to annex Taiwan just because a certain number of nations recognize Taiwan.
As far as the nation’s long-term security, entering regional security blocs and a strong national defense force are important factors, while another important cornerstone is the democratization of China and a willingness on Beijing’s part to respect Taiwan and Taiwanese.
Rather than spending a great deal of effort on consolidating diplomatic relations, the nation should consider how to promote democracy in China. Freedom, democracy and human rights are common, basic human values and they should also appeal to Chinese.
If Taiwan cast off its belief in the importance of the number of diplomatic allies it has, China’s incentive for luring away its allies is likely to weaken.
Hsu Hui-feng is a professor of law at Chinese Culture University and a member of the board of the Taiwan Forever Association.
Translated by Perry Svensson
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