In his farewell address last week, US President Barack Obama said that the diplomatic achievements he was proud of were making Iran abandon its nuclear weapons program “without firing a shot” and restoring diplomatic relations with Cuba.
However, these so-called diplomatic achievements have been questioned in the US, especially by the Republican Party and the US Congress.
Obama has attached much importance to the Asia-Pacific region and advocated a shift of focus to Asia, but there have been many shortcomings and mistakes in the execution of his ideas.
The most obvious shortcoming is the lack of resources: To save the US economy, the president slashed the defense budget — a move that had Pentagon generals publicly expressing their dissatisfaction, questioning how they would be able to do their jobs properly if they were not given the means.
The question of North Korea’s nuclear arsenal has continued to plague Obama, and he has only been able to continue former US president George W. Bush’s policy off “outsourcing” the difficult problem of denuclearizing North Korea to China.
Beijing pretends to be cooperative to secure more time and space for North Korea to research and develop nuclear weapons, with Pyongyang approaching the final stage of being able to launch intercontinental ballistic missiles that can reach the US mainland.
Obama’s missteps have left the “mess” that US president-elect Donald Trump will have to deal with as soon as he takes office.
To avoid offending Beijing, Obama has repeatedly stated that the pivot to Asia is not aimed at China’s rise.
During his eight years in office, Obama has been indulging Beijing, allowing it to expand its military forces in the Asia-Pacific region, building artificial islands and military bases in the South China Sea. The US has missed the chance to stop China’s militarization and military control over the South China Sea. This is another problem that has been left to Trump.
Congress last year passed a resolution reaffirming the Taiwan Relations Act and former US president Ronald Reagan’s “six assurances” as cornerstones of Taiwan-US relations. This was also to express Congress’ dissatisfaction that over the years the Obama administration failed to faithfully abide by and implement US law and a pro-Taiwan policy.
It was due to pressure from Congress that Obama had to sign the US National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 to enhance military exchanges and cooperation.
At a White House press conference at the end of last year, Obama called Taiwan an “entity” to define its status.
He said that as long as Taiwan continues to function with some degree of autonomy, it will not charge forward and declare independence.
These words were not only a misrepresentation of Taiwan and harmed the nation’s sovereignty and integrity, but were also intended to checkmate Trump, obliging him to continue Obama’s “one China” policy.
Over the past 20 years, Taiwanese have promoted democratic reforms and established a popular sovereignty that rests on the will of people and has been publicly affirmed by the US and the international community.
It is imperative that the government and public call on the Trump administration to review Taiwan-US relations, redefine Washington’s Taiwan policy and establish normal political ties and military cooperation.
Parris Chang is a former legislator and former deputy secretary-general of the National Security Council.
Translated by Lin Lee-kai
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