China Taiwan Relations In A Global Context

This book traces the development of Taiwan’s relations with its diplomatic partners and its policy towards the political opponents of its political opponent - mainland China. Paying particular attention to the powers that could exercise great influence in the future of East Asia, China-Taiwan Relations in a Global Context examines the main diplomatic strategies of Taiwan and its counterparts and the major problems for Taiwanese foreign relations. To date there is very little scholarship which examines the ‘Taiwan Issue’ outside of the triangular Beijing-Washington-Taipei framework, this book does exactly that. The contributors examine the development of Taiwan’s relationship with less prominent countries and governments, and attempt to ascertain how such examinations could give rise to new variables that help explain the strategy and purpose of Taiwan’s foreign policy, as well as the reaction and response of mainland China. This book provides readers with vital information about Taiwan’s foreign policymaking and introduces rarely told stories about Taiwan’s foreign relations. The research demonstrates the ceaseless and unyielding diplomatic efforts of the Taiwanese for survival in a shrunken international space and renders for readers a better understanding of the complexity of Taiwan’s relations with the rest of the world. This book is essential reading for anyone interested in Taiwan studies, Chinese politics, Cross-Strait relations and Asian foreign policy.

Interpreting U.S.- China-Taiwan Relations presents an up-to-date, multidisciplinary approach to this often troublesome relationship through essays written by experts in the fields of political science, economics, military science, history and communications. It begins with a focus on the relationship between the U.S. and China as China presses forward with new development while the United States encourages a balance of power in East Asia. It evaluates the successes and failures of the relationship and the forces behind the stands that they take that feed the stress of the relationship. The second group of essays deals with the relationship between China and Taiwan. They examine the recent changes and tentativeness surrounding the situation caused by the death of Deng Xiaoping and the social and economic problems of China, yet communicate a tremendous optimism that a breakthrough will occur in the future. The final essays explore the evolution of China's perceptions of its international environment as it begins to understand and respond to external circumstances better and more positively.

Relations among the United States, Taiwan, and China challenge policymakers, international relations specialists, and a concerned public to examine their assumptions about security, sovereignty, and peace. Only a Taiwan Straits conflict could plunge Americans into war with a nuclear-armed great power. In a timely and deeply informed book, Nancy Bernkopf Tucker traces the thorny relationship between the United States and Taiwan as both watch China’s power grow. Although Taiwan–U.S. security has been intertwined since the 1950s, neither Taipei nor Washington ever fully embraced the other. Differences in priorities and perspectives repeatedly raised questions about the wisdom of the alignment. Tucker discusses the nature of U.S. commitments to Taiwan; the intricacies of policy decisions; the intentions of critical actors; the impact of Taiwan’s democratization; the role of lobbying; and the accelerating difficulty of balancing Taiwan against China. In particular, she examines the destructive mistrust that undermines U.S. cooperation with Taiwan, stymieing efforts to resolve cross-Strait tensions. Strait Talk offers valuable historical context for understanding U.S.–Taiwan ties and is essential reading for anyone interested in international relations and security issues today.

At publication date, a free ebook version of this title will be available through Luminos, University of California Press’s Open Access publishing program. Visit www.luminosoa.org to learn more. China’s relation to Taiwan has been in constant contention since the founding of the People’s Republic of China in October 1949 and the creation of the defeated Kuomintang (KMT) exile regime on the island two months later. The island’s autonomous sovereignty has continually been challenged, initially because of the KMT’s insistence that it continue to represent not just Taiwan but all of China—and later because Taiwan refused to cede sovereignty to the then-dominant power that had arisen on the other side of the Taiwan Strait. One thing that makes Taiwan so politically difficult and yet so intellectually fascinating is that it ­­is not merely a security problem, but a ganglion of interrelated puzzles. The optimistic hope of the Ma Ying-jeou administration for a new era of peace and cooperation foundered on a landslide victory by the Democratic Progressive Party, which has made clear its intent to distance Taiwan from China’s political embrace. The Taiwanese are now waiting with bated breath as the relationship tautens. Why did détente fail, and what chance does Taiwan have without it? Contributors to this volume focus on three aspects of the evolving quandary: nationalistic identity, social economy, and political strategy.

If we are to believe the media then a war between China and Taiwan is inevitable. Incorporating interviews, archives and original research, this book examines the troubled relationship between China, Taiwan and the US, bringing Taiwanese views on identity politics to the forefront of the discussion. Centering on the primary issues facing Taiwan, China and the US, the book analyzes Taiwan’s need to prevent China’s rule suffocating their cherished democracy. It questions whether China will pursue military force to achieve political and economic dominance over Taiwan, and how the US proposes to maintain peace between these two countries to ensure both a continuation of democracy in Taiwan and good relations with China. In highlighting these issues, the book seeks to offer practical policy alternatives that could help to advance the cause of freedom and international peace. Featuring chapters from an international group of academics, the book makes a valuable edition to the understanding of Taiwan-China relations within an international context.

​Taiwan has been excluded from the United Nations and other organizations for which statehood is required and its presence in IGOs is mainly limited to functional and regional organizations that allow flexible models of participation, having a specific name, status and activity space in each organization. Taiwan’s exclusion from major IGOs derives from its unique international status as well as the political controversy over the representation of China in the international arena. Björn Alexander Lindemann provides a substantial analysis of the relationship between Taiwan and China in and with regard to IGOs in the time period between 2002 and 2011. Based on a neoclassical realist approach, he takes a look at the case studies of the WTO, APEC, WHO and UN, and explains Taiwan’s new IGO strategy under President Ma Ying-jeou after 2008 and its impact on Taiwan’s international space.

The "Taiwan question" has long been considered one of the most complicated and explosive issues in global politics. In recent years, however, relations between Taiwan and the Chinese mainland have improved substantially to the surprise of many. In this ground-breaking collection, distinguished contributors from the US, Asia, and Europe seek to go beyond the standard "recitation of facts" that often characterizes studies focusing on the Beijing-Taipei dyad. Rather, they employ a variety of theories as well as both quantitative and qualitative methodologies to analyze the ebbs and flows of the Taiwan issue. Their discussions clearly illuminate why there is a "Taiwan Problem," why conflict did not escalate to war between 2000 and 2008, and why cross-Strait relations improved after 2008. The book further reveals the limits of realism as a device to gain traction into the Taiwan issue, demonstrates the importance of taking into account domestic political variables, and shows how theory can be used to advance the cause of better China-Taiwan relations and to analyze the potential for future conflict over Taiwan. New Thinking about the Taiwan Issue is essential reading not only for students, scholars and practitioners with an interest in studying relations across the Taiwan Strait, but also for any reader interested in economics, international relations, comparative politics or political theory.

The future of the Taiwan Strait is more wide open than at any other time in recent decades. Tensions between China and Taiwan have eased since 2008. But the movement toward full rapprochement remains fragile. Whether the two sides of the Strait can sustain and expand a cooperative relationship after years of mutual distrust and fear is still uncertain. The waters of the Strait are uncharted, and each side worries about shoals beneath the surface. The current engagement between Beijing and Taipei may make possible a solution to their six-decade-long dispute. Whether, when, and how that might happen is, however, shrouded in doubt. China fears the island's permanent separation, by way of either an overt move to de jure independence or continued refusal to unify with the mainland. Taiwan fears subordination to an authoritarian regime that does not have Taipei's interests at heart. And the United States worries about the stability of the East Asian region. Richard Bush, who studied issues surrounding Taiwan during almost twenty years in the U.S. government, explains the current state of relations between China and Taiwan, providing the details of what led to the current situation. And he extrapolates on the likely future of cross-Strait relations. Bush also discusses America's stake, analyzing possible ramifications for U.S. interests in the critically important East Asia region and recommends steps to protect those interests. "At the heart of the [Taiwan conundrum] is a question of definition. Does the dispute stem from the protracted division of the Chinese state after World War II, or does the Republic of China on Taiwan in some sense constitute a successor state of the old Republic of China (ROC), one on a par with the People's Republic of China on the Chinese mainland? Whether and how the unification of the two entities might occur hinges on the answer. Indeed, I have argued that the core of the dispute between the two sides has been their