Defying the international community, 68-year-old Chinese President Xi Jinping promised he would bring about reunification for Taiwan, menacing the Republic of China [ROC], claiming he would prefer diplomacy over military force. Xi has been sending hundreds of Chinese military flights into the Taiwan Strait in the most egregious gunboat diplomacy imaginable Taiwan holds special significance to the United States in the post WW II communist takeover of Eastern Europe and parts of Asia, South America and Africa. Under the U.S. post-war policy of President Harry Truman and then Dwight D. Eisenhower, the U.S. government committed to “containing” the advance of Soviet-style communism, spreading rapidly around the globe. No where was the attempt to escape post-war communism more glaring than a bandful of anti-communist Chinese in the Island of Formosa.
Escaping to Formosa, Gen. Chiang Kai-shek led Chinese nationalists off the mainland seeking refuge from Mao’s communist revolutionaries. About 100 million Chinese died during the 1949 Maoist Revolution, prompting successive generations of Chinese leadership to promise a reunification of China in regions like Hong Kong and the Island of Foremosa. U.S. presidents from Harry Truman on were committed to the protection of Taiwan, where democratic reforms were supported by strong U.S. military backing. When Eisenhower signed the Sino-American Mutual Defense Treaty Dec. 2, 1954, Eisenhower committed the U.S in perpetuity to protecting the independence of Taiwan. Over Beijing’s objections, the U.S. provided Taiwan with air defenses and arms to protect their independence.
After the 1949 Maoist Revolution, China curt itself off from the United States and much of the Western world, only to watch former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger open up the diplomatic door in 1971. Before President Richard Nixon was forced out of office in 1974, he established diplomatic ties to China, opening the door for China’s unprecedented economic development. No only did opening Chinese markets help the U.S. and world economy, it built the middle class in China, providindng the economic growth necessary for China to build out its military. With military installations spread over the Pacific Rim, especially the South China Sea, China routinely bullies its Pacific Rim neighbors Sending hundreds of war planes into the Taiwan Strait, Xi promised that he will not give up on reunification. Unlike in the Eisenhower days, China has the resources to conquer Taiwan.
Before former President Jimmy Carter finished his only term, he signed the 1979 Taiwan Relations Act, rescinding Eisenhower’s Sino-American Mutual Defense Treaty. Carter’s treaty acquiesced to Beijing’s demand to recognize only one China, the one in Beijing. Nothing in the Taiwan Relations Act prohibited the U.S. from supplying Taiwan defensive weapons with which to resist any attempt by Beijing to take over the island. Since British lease on Hong Kong expired July 1, 1997, Beijing has reneged on its “one nation, two systems” policy, cracking down on Hong Kong, to stop waves of pro-democracy protests largely stemming from U.S. backing. Beijing reacted harshly Sept. 15 to the U.S. announcement it would sell nuclear submarines to Australia, creating a four national pact to counter China’s aggression in the Pacific Rim, especially in the South China Sea.
When it comes threating Taiwan, Xi has been relentless, sending waves of fighter jets into the Taiwan Strait. Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen said Taiwan would not accept Beijing’s bulling, vowing to remain independent. But the U.S. has only limited resources to defend Taiwan in the event of a Beijing invasion. Despite all the threatening rhetoric and military flights over the Taiwan Strait, it’s doubtful Xi wants to deal with the global fallout from attacking Taiwan. Secretary of State Antony Blinken reassured Taiwan that the U.S. has its back. But no matter how much military support the U.S. gives Taiwan, it’s in no place to confront Beijing militarily. All the U.S. can do now is work with its global partners to isolate Beijing if it continues to threaten Taiwan’s independence.
President Joe Biden has limited options when it comes to defending Taiwan. Since the 1979 Taiwan Relations Act, the U.S. committed to recognizing only one China, the one in Beijing. At the same time, the U.S. has a long history with Taiwan, providing military support since the 1949 Maoist Revolution. Biden doesn’t want to push China too far, backing off especially when it comes to pinning the origin of thet deadly novel coronavirus on China. When Biden consummated a nuclear submarine deal with Australia, it infuriated Xi Jinping, sending hundreds of war planes into the Taiwan Strait. Pentagon officials don’t have the military resources in the Pacific Rim to confront China in the event of a Taiwan invasion. Xi doesn’t want the adverse publicity from a Taiwan invasion. So the chance of China attacking Taiwan is remote, despite all the gunboat diplomacy.
