Author: Frank Ching
Publication: Theglobeandmail.com
Date: October 29, 2009
URL: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/opinions/taipei-cant-talk-peace-with-a-gun-held-to-its-head/article1344356/
If China wants the United States to stop selling
arms to Taipei, the best thing it can do is scale down its military threat
to the island
Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou, in his first
interview after taking on the chairmanship of the ruling Nationalist Party,
again urged China to scrap missiles along the coast aimed at the island.
But in the year and a half since Mr. Ma took
office, that number, instead of decreasing, has risen and is now believed
to be close to 1,500. "The number continues to go up," he told the
Reuters news agency. "That is certainly a great concern for the people
here."
While Beijing has been willing to accommodate
Taiwan in areas such as economic co-operation, slightly more international
space and a diplomatic truce, it hasn't done much to reduce military pressure.
And while it continues to increase its military
capabilities, it is putting pressure on the United States to halt or at least
reduce arms sales to Taiwan.
Beijing's action is not in Taiwan's interests
and, ultimately, it is not in China's either. China's top priority should
be to enhance Mr. Ma's standing among the voters so as to ensure his re-election
in 2012. If he is defeated, the pro-independence Democratic Progressive Party
will return to power and cross-straits tensions will inevitably heighten again.
It is shortsighted of Beijing to enhance military
pressure on the Ma administration. China's military power is already so much
greater than Taiwan's, it would be irresponsible for Mr. Ma to ignore this
growing imbalance. The natural result is that Taipei will seek arms purchases
from the U.S. to try to reduce it.
If Beijing wants Washington to reduce arms
sales to Taipei, it should demonstrate that China poses little or no military
threat to Taiwan. By continuing to increase the number of missiles, it is
ensuring that the U.S. government will have little choice but to make sophisticated
weapons available to Taiwan.
It is true that the U.S. increasingly needs
China's co-operation to try to resolve international and regional issues,
such as climate change, the global financial crisis and the North Korean nuclear
issue. But this does not mean that it is dependent on China. It means the
two countries are increasingly dependent on each other. U.S. President Barack
Obama, in addressing a meeting of senior Chinese and American officials in
July, said, "The relationship between the United States and China will
shape the 21st century."
It is true, as Chinese officials have emphasized,
that each side must be solicitous of the other's core interests. By this,
Beijing means the U.S. should understand that Taiwan is among China's core
interests.
But while the U.S. welcomes the current increasing
warmth in the cross-strait relationship, it is still bound by U.S. law to
ensure that Taiwan has the means to defend itself if necessary. As long as
China acts in a threatening manner toward Taiwan, the government in Taipei,
regardless of which party is in power, will seek the arms with which to protect
its people and territory. So if China wants the U.S. to stop selling arms
to Taipei, the best thing it can do is to scale down its military threat to
the island. The scrapping of the 1,000-plus missiles aimed at Taiwan is a
good first step.
China seems to have taken the position that
the removal or dismantling of its missiles can come about only as a result
of peace negotiations. That is to say, it wants Taiwan to pay a price for
the removal of this threat. But Beijing should realize that continuing to
step up military pressure on Taiwan will simply provide ammunition to the
opposition party in Taipei, which is relentless in accusing Mr. Ma of kowtowing
to China.
Mr. Ma has said that as long as China still
threatens Taiwan, he will not participate in peace talks. This is reasonable.
After all, how can anyone negotiate with an adversary who is holding a gun
to his head?
- Frank Ching is the author of China: The
Truth About Its Human Rights Record.
