On ‘diplomatic allies’
On April 11, South Korea announced the establishment of diplomatic relations with Syria. With this move, it now has ties with every UN member state except North Korea — its enemy in the still-unresolved Korean War. Does this mean South Korea now has 191 “diplomatic allies,” most of which also maintain ties with North Korea?
This illustrates the absurdity of the term “diplomatic ally” that is so commonly used in Taiwan to describe states that recognize the Republic of China (“Taiwan is in need of real allies,” April 26, page 8).
The framing behind the term is not about recognizing Taiwan itself as a sovereign state. Rather, it reflects the narrative of the Chinese Civil War: Within the concept of “one China,” the question is which government — Taipei or Beijing — is recognized as legitimate. In other words, it is a trap.
Although we must discard this problematic term, Taiwan should not dismiss any country, however poor or small, as insignificant in diplomatic relations. Otherwise, we would descend into the indignity where “the strong do what they can and the weak suffer what they must.”
If we take the cornerstones of the rules-based international order and multilateral diplomacy seriously, we should “act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood” (Article 1, Universal Declaration of Human Rights) and “respect ... the principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples” (Article 1, UN Charter).
Or just remember the golden rule: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”
Te Khai-su
Helsinki, Finland
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