Sun, Dec 19, 1999 page1

• Academics warn of China-US consensus forming on Taiwan

  SOVEREIGNTY China and the US have moved toward a common policy on Taiwan which is designed to isolate and force reunification talks, scholars have said

  • By Catherine Sung / STAFF REPORTER
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  China is deliberately overplaying the "Taiwan issue" in order to align the US with its view on the island's sovereignty, scholars said at the second day of the 1999 Asia-Pacific Security Forum Conference yesterday.

  President Clinton's "three-nos" signal a major US policy change toward Taiwan, the effect of which is seen as an attempt by Washington to force Taipei to the negotiating table for reunification talks.

  "The US had not taken a clear position on Taiwan's sovereignty prior to Clinton's `three-nos' in Shanghai. The Taiwan Relations Act (TRA) certainly does not say anything about that," said Steve Goldstein, a political science professor at Smith College.

  In his visit to China in June 1998, Clinton said the US would not support Taiwan independence, or two Chinas, or Taiwan's membership in any state-based international organizations.

  DPP lawmaker Parris Chang (張|院?/CHINESE>) said Beijing's tactic was to single out and exaggerate the "Taiwan issue" in its relations with Washington.

  "Their strategy is to pressure the US into support of its policy on Taiwan and use the US to isolate Taiwan, to induce reunification talks," Chang said.

  Analysts agreed the "three nos" is a clear China policy which previous US administrations have avoided endorsing.

  With Clinton's "three-nos," Chang said, the US became "intentionally or unintentionally an accomplice in China's campaign to pressure Taiwan into submission."

  Su Chi (蘇起), the chairman of the Mainland Affairs Council, said Washington should be aware of China's strategy.

  "Increasingly, it seems like China unilaterally believes that it can overstep Taiwan and directly discuss cross-strait issues with the US," Su said in a keynote speech.

  "China seems to think it has reached some sort of consensus with the US on issues related to Taiwan's sovereignty," he said.

  Beijing, Su said, is now trying to gain ground on issues of arms sales and the three-links by indirectly pressuring Taipei through Washington.

  The Clinton administration, meanwhile, has strongly opposed the Taiwan Security Enhancement Act (TSEA).

  The controversial bill -- proposed by Republican senator and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Jesse Helms -- upgrades the level of military exchanges between the US and Taiwan by establishing direct communication links between both sides.

  Richard Bush, the chairman and managing director of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) has said the bill would decrease rather than enhance security across the Strait.

  Bush warned that the level of military exchange required under the bill would exceed the level of unofficial relations between Washington and Taipei.

  This would invoke ire from Beijing and increase cross-strait tensions, Bush said.

  Taiwan officials have adopted a conservative attitude toward the bill, while opposition lawmakers such as Parris Chang have reprimanded the government for their lack of zest in lobbying for the act.

  "If the Taiwan lobby in Washington can mobilize and lobby for president Lee Teng-hui's (李登輝) visit to Cornell in 1995, why can't they lobby for a bill that is very important to Taiwan's security?" Chang said.

  Proponents of the TSEA argue that stronger military ties with the US would bolster Taiwan's confidence in negotiating with Beijing, which is a key US aim.

  However, analysts said there is little chance that the bill would pass the Senate.

  "The TSEA would not necessarily have to pass Congress to have the desired effect," said Alexander Huang, a cross-strait specialist with the Washington-based think tank, the Brookings Institute.

  Huang said support in Congress has had the effect of reminding the administration it should improve its implementation of the TRA.

  Other analysts said Taiwan's hands may be tied in pushing for the TSEA.

  "Congress has its own agenda in pushing for the TSEA," Goldstein said.

  "They want more of a say in determining US arms sales and the bill is also a good bargaining chip to use," he said.

  "Maybe the Taiwan lobby was told to stay out of it and just let members of Congress do their job," Goldstein added.
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