US senators on Friday last week introduced a bill aimed at supporting countries that maintain diplomatic ties with Taiwan amid mounting pressure from China. The US-Taiwan partnership in the Americas act seeks to “deepen coordination with Taiwan on diplomatic, development and economic engagement in the Western hemisphere.”
Taiwan has seven remaining diplomatic allies in Latin America and the Caribbean — Belize, Guatemala, Haiti, Paraguay, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines — all of which are facing growing pressure from China to “sever diplomatic relations with Taiwan by leveraging opaque development deals and backroom pressure,” the bill says. To counter that pressure, the act would require the US secretary of state to establish a mechanism to identify China-backed projects in those countries that pose strategic risks or involve nontransparent financing, and coordinate appropriate diplomatic or technical responses.
For the most part, Taiwan’s diplomatic allies have significant development needs. While many of the needs have been partially addressed by the International Cooperation and Development Fund (TaiwanICDF), the agency’s impact has been limited due to the dismantling of the US Agency for International Development (USAID). The TaiwanICDF maintains a strong presence through its technical missions on the ground, but lacks the capacity to implement large-scale projects across multiple countries simultaneously, which is why its USAID partnership is so vital.
“USAID provided the hardware, and we provided the software,” TaiwanICDF deputy secretary-general Hsieh Pei-fen (謝佩芬) once said. Both agencies emphasized knowledge transfer and socioeconomic development, but USAID had far greater financial capacity to deliver large-scale assistance and infrastructure projects.
China’s “dollar diplomacy” continues to be a powerful tool in flipping Taiwan’s allies. Beijing often pledges to fund major infrastructure projects under its Belt and Road Initiative, but in reality, these countries frequently find themselves saddled with unsustainable debt, losing effective control over the assets built under the program. Several countries that have switched diplomatic recognition from Taipei to Beijing — including Honduras, Nicaragua and El Salvador — are estimated to owe China hundreds of millions of dollars each. That trend is deeply concerning for the US, not only because of the economic implications, but also the potential military risks. If debtor countries are unable to repay loans, Beijing could demand access to key infrastructure, including ports, potentially allowing the Chinese military to gain a foothold alarmingly close to US shores.
Taiwanese leaders have consistently acknowledged that they cannot financially match China. With Washington scaling back international aid, the US also finds itself in a weakened position to directly compete with China. However, rather than attempting to match China’s spending, the US could prioritize soft-power initiatives that foster trust and resilience, such as the construction or renovation of schools and hospitals, or the deployment of smart technologies. Taiwan is already engaged in many such efforts, providing training programs and technology transfers in the region. Washington could encourage recognition of Taipei over Beijing through favorable tariff agreements and other economic incentives. It might also emulate Taiwan’s successful model of soft diplomacy by offering scholarships to Latin American students to study in the US, helping to build lasting educational and cultural ties.
It is imperative that the government continue to emphasize to its diplomatic allies that switching recognition to Beijing could lead them down a path of economic dependency and authoritarian influence — one that could ultimately undermine their long-term development and sovereignty.
In the event of a war with China, Taiwan has some surprisingly tough defenses that could make it as difficult to tackle as a porcupine: A shoreline dotted with swamps, rocks and concrete barriers; conscription for all adult men; highways and airports that are built to double as hardened combat facilities. This porcupine has a soft underbelly, though, and the war in Iran is exposing it: energy. About 39,000 ships dock at Taiwan’s ports each year, more than the 30,000 that transit the Strait of Hormuz. About one-fifth of their inbound tonnage is coal, oil, refined fuels and liquefied natural gas (LNG),
On Monday, the day before Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) departed on her visit to China, the party released a promotional video titled “Only with peace can we ‘lie flat’” to highlight its desire to have peace across the Taiwan Strait. However, its use of the expression “lie flat” (tang ping, 躺平) drew sarcastic comments, with critics saying it sounded as if the party was “bowing down” to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Amid the controversy over the opposition parties blocking proposed defense budgets, Cheng departed for China after receiving an invitation from the CCP, with a meeting with
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) is leading a delegation to China through Sunday. She is expected to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) in Beijing tomorrow. That date coincides with the anniversary of the signing of the Taiwan Relations Act (TRA), which marked a cornerstone of Taiwan-US relations. Staging their meeting on this date makes it clear that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) intends to challenge the US and demonstrate its “authority” over Taiwan. Since the US severed official diplomatic relations with Taiwan in 1979, it has relied on the TRA as a legal basis for all
To counter the CCP’s escalating threats, Taiwan must build a national consensus and demonstrate the capability and the will to fight. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) often leans on a seductive mantra to soften its threats, such as “Chinese do not kill Chinese.” The slogan is designed to frame territorial conquest (annexation) as a domestic family matter. A look at the historical ledger reveals a different truth. For the CCP, being labeled “family” has never been a guarantee of safety; it has been the primary prerequisite for state-sanctioned slaughter. From the forced starvation of 150,000 civilians at the Siege of Changchun
RSS