Recent Political Developments in Taiwan: Facing Beijing and Washington

Abstract

In 2012, political developments in Taiwan were somewhat different from what observers predicted at the beginning of the year. The ruling party is now weaker than what it appeared earlier. The United States and mainland China are the two most crucial factors which will determine the future of Taiwan, and at the moment the US’s influence on the political landscape and political orientation in Taiwan is, in general, larger than that of mainland China. This chapter will discuss the major issues in current cross-strait relations and analyse Taiwan’s relations with the United States, China and Japan

Keywords

• Future of Taiwan, Cross-strait Relations, US Policy towards Taiwan.

References

1. Chen Yi-Shen, “The DPP Needs to Grain the US’ Trust”, Taipei Times, 20 February 2012.
2. Winston Dang, “China and US Cannot Co-manage Taiwan”, Taipei Times, 5 February 2012.
3. The Liberty Times Editorial, “Government’s True Nature Exposed”, Taipei Times, 18 March 2012. The controversy over beef products containing ractopamine residues mainly involves US beef, as opposed to that from other sources.
4. “Government Disregarding the Law”, Taipei Times, 22 March 2012. An outspoken writer, historian and former legislator Li Ao criticised Ma on 1 April as “the most pro-US president in Taiwan’s history”, see, Chris Wang, “Ma Involved in Traitorous Acts: Li Ao”, Taipei Times, 2 April 2012.
5. The George W. Bush administration suspended the TIFA negotiation with Taiwan in order to penalise the Chen Shui-bian administration for its refusal to lift the ban on the imports of US beef.
6. The TPP is interpreted by some international observers as an instrument by which the United States intends to bolster its geostrategic interests in the Asia- Pacific region.
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8. “The Benefits of the Cross-Strait ECFA Are Being Offset by the South Koran-U.S. FTA”, China Times, 19 March 2012.

9. In 1999, Lee Teng-hui pronounced his policy toward the China mainland as “special state- to-state relations”. Both Beijing and Washington were shocked and unhappy.
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12. “DPP Pledges to Improve Ties with China”, China Post, 25 February 2012. 15 Ibid.
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14. Some people in the Kuomintang believe that the DPP’s persistent refusal to revise its policy toward cross-strait relations will be in the interest of the Kuomintang in view of the intense competition between them for political power within Taiwan. In their view, the DPP’s flexible attitudes in its policy vis-à-vis mainland China will be more of a threat to the majority support of the Kuomintang in Taiwan.
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36. Ambassador Ikeda made such a statement in his oral presentation at a conference hosted by the Japanese Center of Tamkang University on 24 February 2012. The theme of the conference was “The Developments of Human Rights in Asia”.
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40. Brzezinski, “Balancing the East, Upgrading the West”, p. 103.