Former US secretary of state Mike Pompeo arrived in Taiwan on Monday last week for a four-day visit. It was his second visit this year after a previous trip in March, but this time his itinerary focused on southern Taiwan.
Pompeo went to Kaohsiung to take part in the Global Taiwan Business Forum, then went to Tainan. His visit was also significant to Taiwan’s southern semiconductor corridor.
Pompeo received a warm welcome from Taiwanese at Kaohsiung’s Pier-2 Art Center. Taiwanese are fond of Pompeo — the most Taiwan-friendly of all US secretaries of state — because of efforts during his tenure to enhance the already close relationship between Taiwan and the US, and implement various anti-China and pro-Taiwan policies.
The friendly declarations we have seen from the administration of US President Joe Biden are built upon the foundation laid by Pompeo, who served under former US president Donald Trump. US strategy toward Taiwan, as promoted by Pompeo, shifted from “strategic ambiguity” toward “constructive clarity.”
During his speech at the forum, Pompeo said that “Taiwan does not need to declare its independence, because it is already an independent nation.”
China’s Taiwan Affairs Office spokeswoman Zhu Fenglian (朱鳳蓮) lashed out, saying that “only sovereign states are eligible to participate in the International Civil Aviation Organization, but Taiwan is part of China,” and went on to accuse Pompeo of lying.
Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi (王毅) on Sept. 22 spoke at the Asia Society in New York about the relationship between Taiwan, China and the US. Wang described “Taiwan independence” as a “gray rhino” that must be resolutely stopped.
The “gray rhino effect” refers to a probable crisis, an event that already exists or has a high probability of occurring, but is ignored despite being obvious. Once it occurs, there is only a short time in which to respond, so it could ultimately turn into a major crisis.
However, can the international community accept Wang’s analogy?
As Pompeo said, Taiwan is already an independent country, and China is the one changing the “status quo.” The “gray rhino” is more likely to be the impact of China’s plan to annex Taiwan.
Wang’s and Zhu’s remarks expressed China’s sense of helplessness over the fact that Taiwan is a sovereign state, as no amount of bombast from the Chinese state could stop Pompeo from visiting Taiwan.
Furthermore, Pompeo’s visit was quickly followed by a cross-party delegation of German parliamentarians. These and other visits show how internationalized the Taiwan issue has become, and reveal the broad recognition among democratic countries that Taiwan does not belong to China.
Regrettably, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said that the Democratic Progressive Party’s idea of relying solely on international support would actually put Taiwan in a dangerous situation, and only dialogue and communication can ensure peace in the Taiwan Strait.
Is the KMT so willing to belittle itself, kneel down and beg for peace? Taiwan’s “black bears” must actively prepare for the war that must be fought if China’s “gray rhino” charges at Taiwan.
The world’s democratic camp has already woken up to China as the most threatening beast of the 21st century, but it is even more important for Taiwan to unite to resist the enemy. When facing such peril, no one should be allowed to spread pro-China and anti-US ideas.
Chu Meng-hsiang is former deputy secretary-general of the Lee Teng-hui Foundation.
Translated by Julian Clegg
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