The Taiwanese Ministry of Defense reported this Saturday (08.06.2022) that it deployed combat aircraft following 20 Chinese fighters and 14 warships of the communist power entered the airspace and crossed the middle line of the Taiwan Strait, generally respected for both armies. Taiwanese Foreign Minister Josep Wu condemned what he called a “dangerous escalation of the military threat” that is “destroying peace and stability in the region, and must be condemned.”
On Friday, Chinese forces sent a record 68 fighter jets into Taiwanese airspace. Taiwanese authorities denounced that the Chinese military exercises seek to simulate an invasion of the island, which has led Taipei to deploy missiles, keep its troops on alert and send fighter jets, in addition to warning the Chinese by radio not to enter in areas considered their own by Taiwan.
The Mainland Affairs Council, the Taiwanese entity that coordinates contacts with Beijing, strongly protested the Chinese exercises and called for an immediate stop to a provocation that it considers “irresponsible.” China launched these maneuvers around the territory of this democratically governed island following the visit of the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi.
Warning to Japan
As part of these military exercises, China fired 11 ballistic missiles, five of which fell into Japanese territorial waters, which is seen as a warning to that country not to interfere in the conflict, and one would have flown over Taipei, the capital. Taiwanese. There are “multiple batches of communist planes and ships conducting activities around the Taiwan Strait,” the Taiwanese defense ministry said in a statement.
Therefore, the Continental Affairs Council called on “all our democratic partners in the world to continue to support Taiwan and counteract the irresponsible behavior of an autocratic regime that undermines peace with its military adventurism.”
China regards Taiwan, which is a de facto independent state, as part of its territory, and has warned that it will retake control of it, albeit by force. For this reason, Beijing believes that Pelosi’s visit was a violation of his sovereignty and a provocation, which has generated the greatest crisis between the two world superpowers in recent years.
DZC (dpa, AFP)
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China and Taiwan: The best enemies?
Recapture vs. release
After the end of World War II, the Communist Party led by Mao Zedong waged a harsh war once morest his arch-rival Chiang Kai-shek, head of the Kuomintang (KMT). Chiang took refuge with his forces on the island of Taiwan. For some time, Taiwan was the center of propaganda. The Communist Party wanted to “liberate” the island, while the Kuomintang sought to “recapture the mainland.”
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China and Taiwan: The best enemies?
Letters to “compatriots”
In the 1950s, the Communist Party published four “Messages to Chinese Compatriots” in Taiwan, which are considered the basis of Beijing’s policy towards Taiwan. In these texts, China warns Taiwan of the inconvenience of collaborating with the US “imperialists”. Military clashes, basically artillery attacks, were still recorded in these years.
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China and Taiwan: The best enemies?
Beijing replaces Taiwan at the UN
In 1971, the United Nations General Assembly declared that the People’s Republic of China was the sole legal representative of China. With this decision, the Republic of China (Taiwan) was removed from all UN bodies. The frustration of Taiwanese Foreign Minister Chow Shu-kai (right) and his ambassador Liu Chieh is easy to see in this image.
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China and Taiwan: The best enemies?
new taiwanese politics
Beijing’s fifth and last “message” to Taiwan was published on January 1, 1979. The mainland, under the leadership of reformist Deng Xiaoping, ended military operations, announced the development of bilateral relations, and promised peaceful reunification. However, Beijing’s right to represent China internationally was not questioned.
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China and Taiwan: The best enemies?
The “one China” policy
The new orientation of Chinese policy towards Taiwan took place while Washington and Beijing moved closer to each other. On January 1, 1979, the United States and China resumed diplomatic relations, with Washington – under the presidency of Jimmy Carter – recognizing Beijing as the only legitimate government in all of China. The US embassy in Taiwan was turned into a cultural institute.
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China and Taiwan: The best enemies?
“One China, Two Systems”
Even before meeting with Carter, Deng Xiaoping had already introduced the “one country, two systems” principle, which would allow Taiwan to maintain its social system even following eventual reunification. However, Taiwanese President Chiang Ching-Kuo did not acknowledge receipt. On the contrary, the 1987 formulated the principle of “the best system for one China”.
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China and Taiwan: The best enemies?
independence movement
In 1986, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), Taiwan’s main opposition movement, was founded. In a conclave in 1991, the DPP approved a clause for independence, which stipulated that Taiwan was a sovereign country and not part of China.
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China and Taiwan: The best enemies?
“1992 consensus”
In unofficial talks in 1992 in Hong Kong, representatives from Taipei and Beijing reached a political agreement on the nature of their relations. Both sides agreed that there was only one China. However, they had different views of what “one China” means. A year later, chief negotiators Wang (left) and Koo met in Singapore.
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China and Taiwan: The best enemies?
bilateral relations
In an interview with DW in 1995, Taiwan’s first democratically elected president, KMT leader Lee Teng-hui, said that all relations across the Taiwan Strait should be “defined as relations between states; at best, as a special relationship between states”. This formulation came very close to being a declaration of independence.
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China and Taiwan: The best enemies?
“A state on each side”
The DPP won presidential elections for the first time in 2000, with Chen Shui-bian, a Taiwanese with no connections to China, implying that there was “one state on each side.” This meant that Taiwan had nothing more to do with China. In 2005, Beijing reacted with the Anti-Secession Law, which allows the use of military force in the event that Taiwan declares independence.
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China and Taiwan: The best enemies?
“One China, different interpretations”
After losing the elections in 2000, the KMT adopted a change in the wording of the “1992 Consensus” in the party statutes, which called for understanding that there is “one China, different interpretations.” The 1992 Consensus is still under discussion in Taiwan. The reason: the 1992 negotiators had no official position.
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China and Taiwan: The best enemies?
The Communist Party meets with the KMT
China adopted the “1992 Consensus” as the political basis for its relationship with Taiwan. At the first summit between the two sides since the communists took power in China, Hu Jintao (right) and Lian Zhan endorsed the “1992 Consensus” and the “one China” principle.
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China and Taiwan: The best enemies?
“The address is correct”
After the KMT’s Ma Ying-Jeou won the 2008 presidential election, the two sides continued to grow closer. In an interview with DW in 2009, Ma said that “the Taiwan Strait should be a place of peace and security. We are getting very close to that goal. Basically our direction is the right one.”
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China and Taiwan: The best enemies?
Whither goest thou?
Since the 2016 elections, when President Tsai Ing-wen came to power, the independence movement has been gaining strength. Tsai questioned the existence of the 1992 Consensus, describing the biggest challenge to her country as “China’s attempt to interfere in Taiwan’s political and social development.”
Autor: Fang Wan
