{"id":38162,"date":"2018-03-28T06:00:35","date_gmt":"2018-03-27T19:00:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/?p=38162"},"modified":"2018-03-27T18:37:46","modified_gmt":"2018-03-27T07:37:46","slug":"taiwan-travel-act-returning-contest","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/taiwan-travel-act-returning-contest\/","title":{"rendered":"The Taiwan Travel Act: a returning contest?"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/figure>\n

While the 13th National People\u2019s Congress in China earlier this month grabbed international attention\u2014particularly the constitutional amendment eliminating presidential term limits\u2014other important developments in cross-Straits relations also took place.<\/p>\n

Premier Li Keqiang vowed that there\u2019s no tolerance<\/a> for Taiwanese independence. He also promised \u2018friendship\u2019 and an expanding relationship across the Taiwan Straits in which Taiwan would play a part in the \u2018nation\u2019s\u2019\u2014that is, Beijing\u2019s\u2014rejuvenation<\/a> efforts. In other words, independence is out of the question, but there\u2019s an option for a beautiful and prosperous future together.<\/p>\n

No wonder US President Donald Trump\u2019s signing last week of the Taiwan Travel Act<\/a><\/em> stirred Beijing\u2019s anger and invited promises of retaliation<\/a> and the \u2018punishment of history<\/a>\u2019. The act allows unrestricted two-way travel between the US and Taiwan for American and Taiwanese officials.<\/p>\n

Chinese state media reminds everyone that article 8 of China\u2019s 2005 anti-secession law<\/a> states that Beijing will pursue \u2018non-peaceful means and other necessary measures\u2019 to prevent Taiwan\u2019s secession. China has been consistently trying to limit Taiwan\u2019s international space. For that reason, opening a channel for official exchanges with the US is an unwanted development.<\/p>\n

Late last year, a Chinese diplomat in Washington DC, Li Kexin, warned that the day a US warship visits Taiwan would be the day that the People\u2019s Liberation Army would reunite Taiwan with China by force<\/a>. Since Xi Jinping became president, Beijing has pushed a more assertive regional strategy that includes further encircling Taiwan.<\/p>\n

In recent years, the PRC\u2019s project to limit Taiwan\u2019s diplomatic space has accelerated. For example, Panama\u2014a Taiwanese diplomatic partner since 1912\u2014cut ties with Taiwan last year. As detrimental as the incident was for Taipei, by no means was it exceptional.<\/p>\n

In 1969 there were 71 countries that recognised Taiwan and 48 that recognised the People\u2019s Republic of China. Currently, Taiwan has 20 diplomatic allies<\/a>, whereas the PRC has 175.<\/p>\n

Not only have Taiwan\u2019s bilateral relations suffered, but also its ability to participate in or observe multilateral fora. Beijing is busy vetoing Taiwanese delegates\u2019 participation in inter-governmental organisations and other gatherings where Taiwan has been an observer.<\/p>\n

Recently, INTERPOL<\/a> and the International Civil Aviation Organization<\/a> refused Taipei\u2019s request to attend their general assemblies. Even in the international business and industry worlds, Taiwan\u2019s presence is increasingly problematic. The Kimberly Process\u2014a gathering of the diamond industry\u2014met in May 2017 in Australia. The Chinese delegation forced the exclusion of the Taiwanese team<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Beijing\u2019s goal is to eliminate international recognition that Taiwan is an independent actor with the right to have its own representation. Instead, the PRC wants Taiwan to be treated by the international community as a purely \u2018domestic matter\u2019.<\/p>\n

The Taiwan Travel Act complicates Beijing\u2019s plan. The US is determined to support Taiwan\u2019s participation in the international community. Bilateral relations have gained a new spin since Donald Trump assumed the presidency, starting with him accepting a congratulatory phone call<\/a> from Taiwanese President Tsai Yin-wen.<\/p>\n

For a while, it was thought that this represented a sharp policy change \u00a0in cross-Straits relations and an early signal that Trump would be more assertive in the US relationship with China. However, President Trump quickly reaffirmed his commitment to the One China policy.<\/p>\n

His polar swings between embracing and confronting the PRC have now become his \u2018signature\u2019 policy\u2014to uncertain effect. In mid-2017, for example, Trump approved a US$1.4\u00a0billion arms sale<\/a> to Taiwan. Predictably that angered Beijing.<\/p>\n

\u2018Displeasing\u2019 or \u2018angering\u2019 China is a test the PRC leadership may want all nations to consider when thinking through their actions. Trump certainly seems to see beyond this, perhaps because he too is comfortable using \u2018the theatre of emotions\u2019 in his own statecraft and negotiations.<\/p>\n

This year began with growing tensions in cross-Straits ties, including a recent spat over new commercial air routes launched by China, and the increasing number of patrols by Chinese long-range bombers<\/a> and spy planes around Taiwan. Taipei counted some 25 such drills by Chinese warplanes between August\u00a02016 and December\u00a02017.<\/p>\n

While international attention has been preoccupied with North Korea and the South China Sea, the Taiwan issue remains no less a flashpoint. In fact, arguably it\u2019s the issue that China feels strongest about.<\/p>\n

Despite a limited diplomatic network, Taiwan remains a crucial player in maintaining the regional balance. Taiwan also remains a democracy with a successful and vibrant high-technology economy. It\u2019s considerably more important strategically than the scattered artificial islands in the South China Sea.<\/p>\n

A scenario where China uses force against a democratic Taiwan would be unwelcome across the region. It would end speculation about the kind of China the world faces under President Xi\u2019s leadership in a way that would destroy the narrative of a shared \u2018China dream\u2019.<\/p>\n

A scenario where Taiwan remains a democratic, high-technology society with strengthened relationships in North Asia, Europe, the US and elsewhere\u2014while remaining within the diplomatic \u2018One China\u2019 framework\u2014is one worth contemplating.<\/p>\n

Just days after the signing of the travel act, US senior official Alex Wong, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, met with President Tsai Yin-wen in Taipei. Wong reassured the Taiwanese that US support for Taiwan has never been stronger<\/a>. The travel act is a significant development in cross-Straits relations. Let\u2019s prepare ourselves for the return of Taiwan as a strategic and security issue that matters.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

While the 13th National People\u2019s Congress in China earlier this month grabbed international attention\u2014particularly the constitutional amendment eliminating presidential term limits\u2014other important developments in cross-Straits relations also took place. Premier Li Keqiang vowed that there\u2019s …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":755,"featured_media":38163,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[52,392,1659],"class_list":["post-38162","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general","tag-china","tag-taiwan","tag-us"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nThe Taiwan Travel Act: a returning contest? | The Strategist<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/taiwan-travel-act-returning-contest\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Taiwan Travel Act: a returning contest? | The Strategist\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"While the 13th National People\u2019s Congress in China earlier this month grabbed international attention\u2014particularly the constitutional amendment eliminating presidential term limits\u2014other important developments in cross-Straits relations also took place. 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