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◆ 1.

       Intro to Taiwan in  5 minutes

                                                                                                                                                                                    below each cartoon on The dark side of TW are related or relevant reports or comments

   

CNN (2024-3-10) : the Economist declared that Taiwan was “the most dangerous place on Earth.”; The world's most dangerous place has only gotten more dangerous. Perhaps the extraordinary and rapid growth of China and the reality of America's dominant status made this inevitable, "destined for war" .  In the past, Communist China believed that it could wait (reunification) because time was on its side. But that premise is proving untrue. This issue will need to be managed rather than solved —All three sides should keep talking ... United States Institute of Peace (2024-3-5) : After Taiwan's election, China is now ratcheting up the pressure. China's efforts to change the status quo with Taiwan could lead to unintentional conflict. Associated Press (2024-3-5):  conquest over the self-governing island democracy of Taiwan, driving Indian forces from their disputed border, and asserting control over islands in the East China and South China Sea all on Beijing's list of priorities. Reuters, 2024-3-5: In the government work report, China reiterated a call for "reunification" with Taiwan, but dropped the descriptor "peaceful", which had been used in previous reports. The change in language is closely watched as a possible sign of more assertive stance towards Taiwan.  China raises defence spending by 7.2% USNI.org, 2024-3-1: Report to Congress on Taiwan Defense and Military Issues / The archipelago's energy, food, water, internet, and other critical infrastructure systems are vulnerable to external disruption.  Civil-military relations are strained...Taiwan's civil defense preparedness is insufficient, and its military struggles to recruit, retain, and train personnel.  it is not clear what costs—in terms of economic security, physical safety and security, and lives—Taiwan's people would be willing or able to bear in the face of possible PRC armed aggression...renewing U.S. debates about how to allocate limited resources to shore up Taiwan's resilience  New York Times, 2024-2-26: The P.L.A.'s now-normalized presence around Taiwan raises the risk of an accidental confrontation. Taiwan's response has been inconsistent and lacks transparency, which may further embolden Beijing...Taipei's approach to sharing information about Chinese activities with the public has not been fully transparent   Financial Times, 2024-2-27: Chinese research ships increase incursions near Taiwan Financial Times, 2024-2-23: In the past, China would only talk about the ‘one-China principle’, but now they have rolled it all into one with the push for unification VOA, 2024-2-23: Taiwan faces tough balancing act as China increases pressure Yahoo News, 2024-2-24: Trump wouldn't say definitively one way or the other whether he would defend Taiwan. DAVID SACKS: and actually blame Taiwan for taking America's semiconductor industry.  So I do think the US presidential election could be a real factor here. CNN, 2024-2-23: Xi takes a page from Putin as he vows to control Taiwan; Xi is expanding China's military at a pace the world has not seen in a century since before World War II.     full text

 

Foreign Affairs, 2024-2-20       foreignaffairs.com/scared-strait  brief

Raymond Kuo, Michael A. Hunzeker, Mark A. Christopher GLASER, WEISS, AND CHRISTENSEN reply
(They) argue that Washington and Taiwan are not doing enough to assure Beijing of their intentions, in the process undermining deterrence in the Taiwan Strait.... providing more assurances will simply embolden Beijing to continue its threatening behavior.  Conditional, credible consequences are now essential to encouraging a less bellicose Chinese policy...when deterrence is needed against a determined and capable rival, assurances that are not reciprocated can quickly become concessions. we did not advocate an “assurance first” strategy that offers “concessions” to appease Beijing... the new military measures we think are needed for deterrence will be less effective if Beijing believes they are aimed at buttressing a unilateral assertion of independence by Taiwan or ... an alliance... China can attack out of fear.  They may believe that Taiwan can safely assert permanent sovereign independence as long as there is sufficient military might in place to dissuade Beijing from attacking. If so, they are hardly alone, but we strongly disagree.

 

 

 

Foreign Affairs, 2024-2-16: A war over the island could easily cause a global depression.   A Chinese seizure of Taiwan could trigger a race among nations to develop their own nuclear arsenals as U.S. security guarantees lost credibility DW, 2024-2-16: Elbridge Colby: Taiwan's military preparation has "lagged behind the scale of the threat" despite some incremental progress. "Not really doing anything near what it would need to do to make itself more defensible" borders on "vaguely suicidal behavior"  CSIS.org , 2024-2-13: Specific interests, rather than democratic solidarity,  stability, rather than debates over Taiwan's sovereignty are more likely to drive engagement with Taiwan in most parts of the world  Council on Foreign Relations, 2024-2-8: Differences over Taiwan's status have fueled rising tensions between the island and the mainland.  Through its policy of strategic ambiguity, the US has for decades attempted to maintain a delicate balance between supporting Taiwan and preventing a war with China. But President Joe Biden has seemingly rejected the policy, stating several times that the US would come to Taiwan's defense if China attacked. White House officials have walked back his comments, saying the policy has not changed, but ultimately, the president gets to decide how to respond.

 

the Deaths of Chinese Fishermen That Taiwanese Forces Chased Away -

tensions between China and Taiwan reached a new high

Associated Press, 2024-2-18 The fishermen's deaths are unusual despite the level of Chinese activity in the waters near Kinmen, which is closer to China than it is to Taiwan's main island
TIME, 2024-2-15 China: Taiwan's officials have long mistreated fishermen from the mainland and forcefully and dangerously seized mainland fishing boats, a pattern it claims led to the recent
Reuters, NBC News, 2024-2-18 China has condemned Taiwan's actions and labeled the death incident "wicked".  The deaths had caused “strong indignation” in China, and there is no such thing as ‘prohibited or restricted waters’.  China will strengthen its law enforcement activities and carry out regular patrols around a small group of Taiwanese-controlled islands off the Chinese coast as tensions rise over the deaths of two Chinese nationals
Daily Express (UK), 2024-2-18 China ramps up coast guard ships in Taiwan waters as tensions rise over fishermen deaths. Tensions between China and Taiwan have reached a new high.
DW (Germany), 2024-2-16 Inevitable Taiwan tensions in 2024
China Daily (China) , 2024-2-19

China: A callous act with disregard for human life. It has caused strong indignation across the mainland ; For many years, the mainland established reception facilities for Taiwan fishermen in numerous coastal areas, provided them assistance such as shelters and supplies, and rescued Taiwan fishing boats and fishermen,In contrast, the DPP Taiwan have, for some time, forcefully detained mainland fishing boats under various pretexts and treated mainland fishermen in a rude and dangerous manner, this was the key reason why the fatal incident occurred.  The mainland reserves the right to take further measures, and Taiwan will bear all consequences.

Taipei Times (Taiwan), 2024-2-16 Taiwan (MAC) : Coast guard's conduct appropriate -  they were legally performing their duties and had not erred in any way.  Chinese fishing vessels have been intruding into Taiwan's restricted or prohibited waters for a while to poach high-priced fish

 

  Newsweek, 2024-2-8: US Army special forces as a permanent arrangement train Taiwan troops in Penghu, Kinmen and Taoyuan; the permanent presence of American forces on the island was considered a possible trigger for a cross-strait shooting war  TIME , 2024-2-9: In an event of invasion, the first 48 hours are extremely important, because that’s the window within which China will take advantage of its geographic proximity, and it will take some time before the American Navy Indo-Pacific Command can respond to a major contingency,  “That's where the Philippines comes in.” Reuters, 2024-2-6: If an attack comes, the Pentagon believes Beijing will want to seize the capital as fast as possible and isolate the island's leadership; Stopping that would require rapid mobilisation -  but more than two million former conscripts receive no ongoing further training   New York Times, 2024-2-5 briefing: China's expanding nuclear arsenal - The weapons could also shape the future of Taiwan — if China gained confidence that it could use their existence to limit Western intervention in any conflict National Interest, 2024-2-2:  hybrid warfare operations still fit better into China's cost-benefit calculus. China's invasion of Taiwan seems unlikely in the short term. Instead, the military aspects of China's hybrid warfare operations may be more visible in the near future Reuters, 2024-1-31: Taiwan angered at 'unilateral' China change to Taiwan Strait flight path, saying it appeared to be a deliberate attempt to change the status quo for possible military means.

 

 ◆  the  Lowy Institute Asia Power Index, 2023 Edition

  Taiwan China Japan Korea Singapore
Comprehensive Power No.14  down 15.2 2nd 3rd 7th 8th
Economic capability 8th  -1.2   down 13.0 2nd  87.0 3rd   5th 6th
Military Capability 11th  +2.1   up 21.7 2nd   68.1 6th   27.4 5th 9th
Resilience 18th   -5.9 down 24.7 3rd   70.4 11th  10th 14th
Future Resources 12th  up 6.5 2nd   72.9 5th 7th 11th
Diplomatic Influence  22th  -3.9   down 19.4 1st    91.5 3rd 6th 10th
Economic Relationships 12th  +0.6  up 11.1 1st   98.3 3rd 5th 4th
Cultural Influence 13th  -2.2   down 12.6 2nd   47.4 3rd 7th 9th
Defense Networks 16th  down 11.8 7th    23.7 3rd 4th 5th
power.lowyinstitute.org/countries/taiwan/

 

Bloomberg, TIME, 2024-1-31:China says the U.S. could abandon Taiwan if Trump wins the Presidency; In July, Trump avoided directly answering a query over whether as president he'd defend Taiwan if China attacked.

  New York Times, 2024-1-27:  The truth is that Taiwan hasn't been willing to make deep sacrifices for its own security.  It allocates a smaller share of G.D.P. to defense than the United States, Israel or Estonia; it is only now requiring a year of military conscription (for men); and it is phasing out nuclear power plants, which are critical for resilience in a blockade because they provide homegrown power when imports provide 98 percent of energy National Interest, 2024-1-27: the Atlantic Council reported that Taipei has a potential defensive force of 450,000 troops. Using the traditional three-to-one ratio of attackers to defenders to successfully mount an invasion, China would need more than 1.2 million troops. While an air campaign could bring Taipei to its knees and then the peace table, such an effort would utterly destroy the island's infrastructure in the process Economist, 2024-1-25: China is changing the status quo militarily and on the diplomatic stage. That bodes ill for the future. As China sees it, the more countries that adopt its view of Taiwan, the more cover it has to turn words into action New York Times, 2024-1-24: Some believe — it appears this may be Trump's view — that T.S.M.C. is so valuable that it might tempt China to try to grab Taiwan, and then bring the world to its knees.  Given how difficult it is to move production, the best way to safeguard the manufacturing of chips may be to work harder than ever to deter and avoid war in the Taiwan Strait. Wall Street Journal, 2024-1-19: The prospect that Taiwanese voters might never elect a Beijing-friendly government again could tilt China toward harsher methods to seek unification, including military force Washington Post, 2024-1-17:  The Taiwanese people showed they are not interested in becoming a pawn in the U.S.-China competition. Taiwan wants ties with both the US and China New York Times, 2024-1-17: A peaceful solution on Taiwan is slipping away.  Chinese law explicitly states that Beijing may use force if possibilities for peaceful unification are “completely exhausted.”.  Conflict between China and the United States just got a little more likely. New York Times, 2024-1-15: Taiwan's president-elect represents a setback for China Some U.S. officials have warned, China will be increasingly ready to try to seize or subdue Taiwan by force... Lai may have to watch his tendency for occasional off-the-cuff remarks, which Beijing could exploit and turn into crises.    New York Times, 2024-1-13: Mr. Lai's victory (in presidential election) forces Mr. Xi to face a lack of progress.  With Taiwan's sense of self and China's expectations in conflict, Mr. Xi is not expected to sit idly by Washington Post, 2024-1-10:  increasingly frequent warnings from China's strongman leader Xi Jinping that Beijing's rule here is “inevitable” — raising the prospect of a conflict that could draw in the United States

 

 Barron's, 2024-1-9: Experts consider an all-out invasion unlikely in the near term, but discussions are still happening within security circles from Taipei to Washington.  Washington Post, Daily Express, 2024-1-9: Tensions between China and Taiwan are reaching new highs ahead of this weekend's elections. Taiwan issues red alert after Chinese satellite flies over airspace. This appears to be the first time the Taiwanese government has issued a similar island-wide alert, and comes just days before Taiwan is to hold pivotal presidential and legislative elections Washington Examiner, 2024-1-8: According to the Economist, China has directly warned the U.S. of the consequences of a Lai victory, raising tensions in the region. In the event of a Lai victory, large-scale demonstrations from the Chinese military and other belligerent moves are expected. The prospect of Taiwan severing ties with a China ... possibly leading him to warm to direct military action. NBC , 2024-1-9: China has framed the (Taiwan) election as “a choice between war and peace.”; Wen-Ti Sung, a nonresident fellow at the Atlantic Council, described Taiwan's security situation as “urgent but not immediate.”  SCMP, 2024-1-5: Beijing option: quarantine commercial ships headed for Taiwan, something it has hinted at doing. They could decide to randomly force shipping to go to a port in mainland China before docking in Taiwan. It's a good way to assert soft sovereignty. Washington Post, 2024-1-5: With wars in Europe and the Middle East, U.S. power is stretched dangerously, historically thin. The temporary reduction in cross-strait tensions that would accompany a KMT victory could give Washington a window — if politicians are willing to seize it — to put the U.S. military deterrent on a firmer footing Foreign Affairs, 2024-1-5: a growing chorus of voices argue that continued support to Ukraine is detracting from the real threat—namely, a Chinese invasion of Taiwan; Prematurely abandoning Ukraine to preserve resources for Taiwan could embolden other adversaries. It might, for example, signal to Iran and North Korea...    Reuters, 2024-1-3: 'Hawkish' China military squeeze on Taiwan likely after election. If the DPP wins the presidency but loses its majority in parliament, that could also temper China's response given it would weaken the DPP's ability to pass legislation   Wall Street Journal, 2023-12-29: Taiwanese politics has shifted decisively, and perhaps irrevocably, away from China. In Taipei, Lai paints a picture of a Taiwanese public far less preoccupied with Beijing’s designs than political leaders in the Western world. The KMT accused the DPP of underplaying the deterioration of cross-strait ties and the risk of war CNN, 2023-12-29: Beijing has long used its massive coast guard as a force to project power, some analysts believe that China could soon start to deploy the coast guard to ratchet up the pressure on Taiwan NBC, 2023-12-26: Xi's private warning  on reunifying Taiwan to Biden was delivered at a time when China's behavior toward Taiwan is seen as increasingly aggressive and ahead of a potentially pivotal    presidential  election in the self-governing democratic island next month. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C. said: First, create a robust defense supplemental for Taiwan and second, draft pre-invasion sanctions from hell to impose on China if they take action to seize Taiwan. New York Post, 2023-12-26: Xi Jinping says China's ‘complete reunification’ with Taiwan will ‘surely’ happen  full text

 

  Politico, 2023-12-23: The guessing game of how likely an intervention — or even invasion — by China is helps explain the nervy tenor of this race (presidential election). New York Post, 2023-12-21: China's Xi Jinping warned Joe bluntly that Beijing will take Taiwan... If Xi tries to take Taiwan by force, it’ll leave Washington two options: abandon our Pacific allies and let China have it, with catastrophic consequences — or help the island nation fight off the Chinese, risking a war that could go nuclear. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) , 2023-12-13: Taiwan is a country that suffers from one of the lowest trust rates in the media among democracies (28%) and where the media community is often criticised for disregarding journalism ethics... journalists suffer from a very polarised media environment dominated by sensationalism and the pursuit of profit at the expense of quality news reporting.   National Interest, 2023-12-11: China is flexing its aircraft carrier muscles near Taiwan   The Telegraph, 2023-12-2: Taiwan is about to vote against China.  War is coming. The time for doing business with China is finished   The Market Oracle (UK), 2023-11-28: Taiwan's elections loom just a few weeks away. Continued militarization would undermine past economic success. Taiwan is at its ultimate crossroads.  Almost every second Taiwanese would prefer a less confrontational stance and greater focus on domestic economy.    The Diplomat, 2023-12-1: the KMT has a history of opposition against asymmetric strategies. Most recently, KMT legislators attempted to block new capabilities ranging from the purchase of Harpoons to Javelins and Stingers.  Jaw (vice-president candidate) is an avowed opponent of the 12-month conscription, calling it a provocation to Beijing.     Bloomberg, 2023-11-26: Taiwan draws clear US-versus-China battle lines in key election ; an unprecedented third straight term in power for the DPP is by no means a foregone conclusion. There are a substantial amount of voters who want a change   Reuters, 2023-11-24:  China ties on the line as Taiwan opposition splits in dramatic feud   The Hill, 2023-11-16: Biden, Xi reset relationship but without a ‘breakthrough’... had a candid discussion about the future of Taiwan; and signaled war was not on the horizon.   Economist, 2023-11-13: Strategists worry about a “window of vulnerability” in the Indo-Pacific this decade, as China’s forces grow stronger and America’s investments in new military equipment don’t fully bear fruit until the 2030s...As for capacity, the Pentagon long ago abandoned the requirement that its armed forces be able to fight two major regional wars simultaneously.   Newsweek, 2023-11-9:  Taiwan's long wait for nearly $20 Billion in American weapons, asymmetric weaponry accounts for $4.22 billion, or 22 percent of the backlog.   BBC, 2023-11-9: If Taiwan is not controlling sensitive and secret information very well… You should expect any competent foreign intelligence service to get access to it.   BBC, 2023-11-6:  In Washington there is a strong sense that Taiwan is running out of time to reform and rebuild its military.  In a conflict with China, Taiwan's navy and air force would be wiped out in the first 96 hours of battle. Under intense pressure from Washington, Taipei is switching to a "fortress Taiwan" strategy - repelling an invasion on the beaches and, if necessary,  in the towns and cities   New York Times, 2023-10-29:  Taiwan must accelerate its shift toward investing in defense capabilities - make a greater effort to stockpile not only munitions, but also food, water and energy. It needs to adopt a whole-of-society approach to its defense that emphasizes national resistance, resilience and the willingness to fight. Newsweek, 2023-10-26: Taiwan Voters Must Choose Between 'War and Peace,' China Says    SKY News (Australia), 2023-10-21:   Taiwan has been accused of permitting modern modern-day slavery with its migrant workers...migrant workers are often mistreated in an unfair system which needs to be overhauled.    SCMP, 2023-10-21: The inadequate training given to Taiwanese reservists after discharge has been known for some time, drawing criticism from the US, ...Taiwan could also learn from Israel about maintaining a lasting public enthusiasm to fend off the enemy   Newsweek, 2023-10-16: The U.S. has known since no later than 2012——that Chinese surface-to-surface (STS) missiles can destroy U.S. aircraft carriers, or any other military asset that isn't submerged; Taiwan has storage capacity for 11 days of natural gas consumption. A Chinese blockade would force Taiwan's surrender in short order.  full text

 

US defend Taiwan ?

The Hill, 2023-9-26

During a Tokyo interview alongside Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, Biden repeated his statement on defending Taiwan: “That’s the commitment we made.” But, when asked whether “the policy of strategic ambiguity towards Taiwan [is] dead,” he replied “No.”
  National Review, 2023-9-19 It's noteworthy that Biden declined to say a single word about Taiwan in his U.N. speech came a day after the Chinese Communist Party's armed forces sent 103 jets into Taiwan’s air-defense identification zone — which is a new record that surpasses even the Chinese tantrum that followed then–House speaker Pelosi's visit to Taiwan.

 

  New York Times, 2023-10-16: if Xi concludes that the United States has broken, once and for all, from its previous position on Taiwan and is bent on thwarting unification, he may feel that he must act militarily.  If the combination of deterrence and reassurance fails and China attacks Taiwan, it will set a precedent in which Chinese leaders kill and destroy to achieve their goals.   Newsweek, 2023-10-16: The U.S. has known since no later than 2012——that Chinese surface-to-surface (STS) missiles can destroy U.S. aircraft carriers, or any other military asset that isn't submerged; Taiwan has storage capacity for 11 days of natural gas consumption. A Chinese blockade would force Taiwan's surrender in short order   Newsweek, 2023-10-12: Since war broke out in the Mideast, some with hawkish views in the U.S. have suggested that Taiwan needs to take its self-defense seriously. full text

  Washington Post, 2023-9-28: Taiwan launches the island's first domestically made submarine for testing

 CNN, 2023-9-28: President Tsai Ing-wen hailed this as a significant milestone. “The submarine is an important realization of our concrete commitment in defending our country”.

 

 Newsweek, 2023-9-29: Taiwan's former military leader who heads the submarine program said that the slated eight Hai Kun-class boats would bolster the country's defenses to the point that "I don't think we will lose a war.".


♦ BBC, 2023-9-28: National University of Singapore Drew Thompson:  the "centre of gravity" for any China-Taiwan naval conflict would not likely be in the deep waters off the island's east coast, where submarines would be most effective in...Instead, the main theatre of war would be in the shallower waters of the west coast facing mainland China... The submarine is not optimised for a counter invasion role...
NewsWeek, 2023-9-29:  A senior researcher at RAND: The relatively shallow, choppy waters of the Taiwan Strait were well-suited for masking submarines but also harder to operate in.  Policy experts in the U.S.  have urged Taipei to adopt an asymmetric defense strategy based on "lots of small, deadly things—anti-ship missiles, anti-air missiles, etc.—that would make Taiwan a porcupine." Such an approach would become more useful, and submarines less so
The Diplomat, 2023-9-30:  The ODC ( typically utilizes large numbers of cheaper, smaller, shorter-range, and more survivable weapons systems.) appears to have fallen out of favor as a result of institutional opposition, even though the United States has sought to pressure the government to focus on less gold-plated procurement projects.
 

 

   Reuters, 2023-9-28: Taiwan says" it's not likely for them (China) to do anything major to threaten Taiwan or anything so visible that the Taiwanese people understand that they are trying to intervene in our election" Economist, 2023-9-26: Taiwanese voters will in effect be asked to decide whether Taiwan should remain aligned with America in strengthening deterrence against a possible Chinese invasion, or should move towards building ties with China. The opposition Kuomintang has called the vote a choice between “war and peace”, implying that the ruling Democratic Progressive Party’s hostility towards China will provoke it to attack.  China...narratives that portray America, not China, as the island's biggest threat.   Washington Examiner, 2023-9-26: Americans are increasingly concerned over tensions between China and Taiwan, with more than 80% reporting the problem is "somewhat" or "very serious" for the U.S.   Council on Foreign Relations, 2023-8-30:  Taiwan Announced a Record Defense Budget: But most important, the proposed budget still falls far short of what the island should be investing in defense. Ironically, the smallest growth in Taiwan’s defense budget in half a decade is coming at a time when defense spending should be accelerating to confront the growing threat that Taiwan faces. In practice, Taiwan needs procuring more anti-tank and anti-aircraft missiles, investing in rapid mining capabilities, developing drones and unmanned underwater vehicles, expanding domestic defense industrial capacity, and hardening critical infrastructure. Washington Post, 2023-8-28 : Taiwanese voters could either fuel or dampen the mounting tensions. Their choice is between a ruling party determined to maintain Taiwan's political independence, and an opposition that sees closer ties with China as the only viable path.    Atlantic Council, 2023-8-23:  full-fledged invasion of the island would be difficult. But there are other scenarios, such as a blockade, that would paralyze life on the island and make a Chinese invasion a lot easier. In the event of a PRC invasion of the island, the West will come to Taiwan's aid, with the United States taking the lead, but the most important part should be done by the Taiwanese. We can’t be more Taiwanese than they are themselves.    full text

 

 Bloomberg, 2023-8-14:  Taiwan's Election Is All About War...  it's concerning that the opposition may not be able to coalesce behind one candidate. That's an election Lai (DPP Lai Ching-te) can win. New York Times, 2023-8-11: large-scale missile attacks or saturation attacks would likely overwhelm Taiwan's air defense systems A real fighting on the ground at the airport and using infantry forces imply that Taiwan had already lost the war in the air. "By the time , it will be, more or less, over"     Washington Post, 2023-7-29: U.S. to provide up to $345 million in military aid to Taiwan;  a defense analyst in Taiwan was skeptical of the aid package and pointed to “serious delays in recent years in the delivery of numerous U.S. arms sales” to Taiwan. Bloomberg, 2023-7-29: Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines have said they don't see an effort by China to seize Taiwan by force as imminent Washington Examiner, 2023-7-24:  China and Russia train together to sink US submarines the U.S. retains a key, though diminishing, advantage in undersea warfare. U.S. submarines remain a thorn in China's side.   Financial Times, 2023-7-23: Washington is reducing some long-term deployments in the Indo-Pacific,...the US's decision to help Ukraine only with weapons and the wavering of some European countries about support for Kyiv do not bode well for Taiwan   Daily Express, 2023-7-23: Japan says:  If people all over the world have the will to support Taiwan, it would be very possible that we will provide some kind of support to Taiwan...the government would need to first secure the support of the population before intervening.   full text

 

 Taiwan into 'powder keg'

2022-7-19: Mark Esper suggests extending Taiwan's compulsory military service period to ensure combat effectiveness

2022-12-24: The US signs into law the NDAA for the fiscal year 2023, under NDAA, a war reserve stockpile of weapons is to be established in Taiwan

2022-12-27: Taiwan extended the period of compulsory military service to one year

2023-3-24: Former National Security advisor Robert O'brien says Taiwan should familiarize its people with weapons to deter Chinese mainland
2023-4-20: The Select Committee on Strategic Competition Between the US and CCP conducts a war game on a cross-Taiwan Strait War, and vows to "arm Taiwan to the teeth" to deter an "invasion"
2023-7-28: Biden Admin. announces a $345 millions weapons package for Taiwan.
chinadaily.com.cn/a/202308/11/WS64d5646da31035260b81b718.html   2023-8-11

 

Fox News, 2023-7-28  
The coming China war over Taiwan - The US should fight alongside allies, not in their place

a critical question – is Taiwan committed to its own defense? There are multiple indications that the answer is no.
perhaps most alarmingly, some Taiwanese youth, it turns out, are reluctant to die for their country.Research in 2018: Large numbers of young Taiwanese were "apathetic toward the military and averse to service." 
Biden must show leadership now, before it’s too late, and force Taiwan to participate much more in its own defense...
foxnews.com/opinion/coming-china-war-over-taiwan-needs-american-leadership-before-too-late   Rebekah Koffler

 

  Wall Street Journal, 2023-7-15:  Japanese leaders publicly shun discussion of a role in any Taiwan war, in part because public opinion is generally against getting ensnared in a conflict.  ◆  National Interest, 2023-7-16: extension of the compulsory conscription program received backlash from younger Taiwanese. U.S. deterrence strategy without sufficient Taiwanese military capability and determination of Taiwanese people would lose its solid foundation  ... it is likely that Beijing will act early against Taiwan   National Review, 2023-7-15: the Chinese military is advantaged if a Taiwan invasion is viewed as a local, limited conflict... Janet Yellen: If reelected, president Biden may prefer not to fight for Taiwan.  CNN, 2023-7-14:  it may become too late for Washington to come to Taipei's rescue if large amounts of PLA planes and ships are already on station around the island.  ◆  Reuters, 2023-7-14:  US needs to speed up delivery of weapons like air defence systems and those that could target ships from land to Taiwan  in the coming years.  ◆  Council on Foreign Relations, 2023-7-7: Taiwan's dominance of semiconductor production ... is unlikely to act as a “silicon shield"   ◆  Wall Street Journal, 2023-7-5:  Taiwan is far from ready, the professionalism and motivation of Taiwan's military are a particular concern ◆ Economist, 2023-5-31:  Taiwan's would-be presidents all promise a way to peace. Sadly, it is not entirely within their power. Washington Examiner, 2023-6-1:  Elbridge Colby : "If Taiwan is so blithe about its own defense, why should Americans stick their necks out?  The Guardian, 2023-5-24:  Taiwan's main political parties and an overwhelming majority of Taiwan's people reject the prospect of Chinese rule, but there are large differences in their plans for protecting Taiwan - the KMT says the best way forward is to have friendlier ties with China, DPP's Lai  has been described as more “green” (pro-independence) than Tsai Ing-wen  The Guardian, 2023-5-22: over 90% of the world's semiconductors are made in the place many US officials think could be the site of the next global conflict: Taiwan. Fortune, 2023-5-21: Warren Buffett  told Japan'Nikkei that the threat of war was a “consideration” in dumping the bulk of the stake in TSMC. Musk told the Financial Times that a conflict over Taiwan is inevitable. His comments did not go over well in Taiwan Washington Post, 2023-5-18: it is now a very serious question whether the United States can defeat a Chinese invasion of Taiwan. To avert war with China, the U.S. must prioritize Taiwan over Ukraine   full text

 

Reuters, 2023-5-20 "war is not an option", Taiwan president says
Washington Examiner, 2023-6-1 Elbridge Colby : "If Taiwan is so blithe about its own defense, why should Americans stick their necks out?
Washington Examiner, 2023-5-19 The top-line fact in the weapons to Ukraine or Taiwan debate Taiwan's defense spending remains absurdly inadequate. It's also feasible that Taiwan may elect a new government in 2024 that lacks sufficient resolve to fight China. In contrast, Ukraine has shown not just the resolve to fight against overwhelming odds, but the spirit to win.

 

New York Times, 2023-5-17: As China looms over Taiwan's Presidential race, the opposition picks a moderate Hou Yu-ih, trying to appeal to voters wary of Beijing New York Times, 2023-5-11:  Taiwan's world-dominating microchip sector was built by its strategic asset, TSMC's skilled employees. But a demographic crisis, demanding work culture and flagging interest threaten its lead  Washington Post, 2023-5-10:  A war involving Taiwan would depend more on the U.S. Navy and Air Force, as well as hybrid warfare tools that are used in information and cyber operations. Foreign Policy in Focus, 2023-5-10:  Unlike Russia, China seems unwilling to sacrifice the country's economic well-being on the pyre of nationalism  19FortyFive, 2023-5-10: By stacking their heaviest punches upfront, Beijing thinks that they can render the Americans so dazed and confused — inflicting so much damage at the outset of a fight — that Washington will stand down and abandon Taiwan  Washington Times, 2023-5-9: Taipei unnerved by investor fears, apocalyptic rhetoric, Taiwanese officials are trying to tone down alarmist comments made by U.S. investment gurus and policymakers about the risks of a clash with China, "the fearmongering talk coming out of Washington isn't helping"  ◆Business Insider, 2023-5-3: In first-of-its-kind drill, US Army special operators train to defend Taiwan against Chinese attack, while the "ultimate backstop" remains America's nuclear capabilities, according to the Pentagon's National Defense Strategy   Daily Express, UK, 2023-5-3: WW3 fears as Taiwan issues a threatening statement about how it intends to handle imminent China invasion   le Monde, 2023-4-30: China's military exercises in the Taiwan Strait are a reminder of how fragile the island's status quo is  Brookings, 2023-4-17: the Taiwan voters are deeply pragmatic. a significant majority of the Taiwan voters are in the middle The Register, 2023-4-22: Taiwan asks US if it could chill out on the anti-China rhetoric "We're trying to run a chip business here"  New York Times, 2023-4-18: Fear of China is pitting Taiwan's people against each other Brookings, 2023-4-15:   While Taiwan clearly is under growing military threat, it also is facing a simultaneous and intensifying Chinese political campaign to wear down the will of the Taiwan people.  New York Times, 2023-4-14: China's Communist Party is now convinced that America wants to bring it down, which some U.S. politicians are actually no longer shy about suggesting. The Guardian, 2023-4-14:  German foreign minister warns of ‘horror scenario’ in Taiwan strait  The Guardian, 2023-4-14:  German foreign minister warns of ‘horror scenario’ in Taiwan strait Daily Express, 2023-4-14: Americans ready to fight China to keep Taiwan independent as WW3 fears ramp up  Daily Express, 2023-4-14:  Taiwan warns China ready to 'launch war' as Beijing looking to teach US lesson Newsweek, 2023-3-31:  "Tsai's visit to the U.S. can be seen as a face-saving way for the U.S. to avoid another Pelosi-like fiasco from which it is still paying a price in global standing," " At the same time, Ma's visit to China shows there is strong desire on both sides of the Taiwan Straits for a peaceful solution."   Economist, 2023-3-29: a Taiwanese policy adviser frames voters' choice as one between “peace or war” ...The  DPP has criticised KMT's  "embracing appeasement”, but it, too, worries about conflict  Taiwan is losing its friends.  Economist (2023-3-28): With China's wallet growing ever larger, Taiwan may instead need to hope that historical ties help to sustain the loyalty of its few remaining diplomatic partners   Reuters, 2023-3-13:  In "anticipation of a total blockade of the Taiwan Strait"... Taiwan says defence spending to focus on readying for 'total blockade' by China full text

 

U.S. Naval War College  - China Maritime Studies Institute (Mar., 2023): The US may be able to defeat an attempted invasion landing but will lose when China imposes a blockade on the island  Foreign Policy Research Institute, 2023-3-9: Taiwan's "porcupine strategy" calls for Taiwan to arm itself with thousands of mobile anti-ship and anti-air weapons, sea mines, drone strike systems, and other smaller, mobile systems. While it still struggles with two challenges: a continued preference for big-ticket defense systems, and US delays in delivering weapons  Economist, 2023-3-6:  The KMT  has been unable to articulate a new cross-strait strategy beyond continuing dialogue with the Chinese Communist Party.  the  DPP   has also been hesitant about telling voters to prepare for war. The DPP   has already softened its messaging, from Ms Tsai's slogan of  “Resist China and protect Taiwan”, to the more pacific “Peacefully protect Taiwan”. VOA Asia Weekly, 2023-3-9: Taiwan's so-called “silicon shield”  semiconductor is building its second US facility in Arizona, But Taiwanese officials worry that U.S. national security may come at a cost to their own.  Economist, 2023-3-6: Taiwan needs to prioritise becoming a porcupine, but they continue to build big ships and to buy better planes partly as a public-relations exercise. Politicians like to point to arms sales as evidence of American support. Better weapons boost morale.     New York Times, 2023-2-22: TSMC might have been forced to set up a factory in the United States because of political considerations, but so far, the Phoenix project has yielded very little benefit for TSMC or Taiwan...citing lofty costs.   Bloomberg, 2023-2-22: Holding off the PLA for two weeks is a key goal of Taiwan's military because it would allow time for the US and other allies to come to its aid. Washington Post, 2023-2-22: Our best chance of preventing an invasion of Taiwan, and of essentially preventing World War III, is to put actual hard power on Taiwan ◆ Washington Post, 2023-2-20:  growing concern — conviction even — that war between the United States and China could be coming. The U.S. should deter — not provoke — Beijing over Taiwan. Economist, 2023-2-18: China still relies on Russia for certain crucial military components, which makes the friendship central to any plans China might have to invade Taiwan  NY Times, 2023-2-15: An active denial strategy that focuses on supplying defensive weapons to U.S. allies and a lower-profile, more agile deployment of U.S. forces in the region would raise the costs of Chinese military action without exacerbating China's own sense of insecurity Council on Foreign Relations, 2023-2-12: the unpredictable nature of ADIZ violations is intended to keep the status quo around Taiwan unstable and ambiguous in order to facilitate strategic surprise ◆ CNN, 2023-2-9: More US firms in Taiwan say they're seeing 'significant disruption' due to rising tension with China - elevated concern from global headquarters, increased shipping, insurance or financial costs, as well as staff anxiety  Bloomberg, 2023-2-5:   the US position on the island remains equivocal. The intention is to avoid provoking Beijing, yet the consequence is to weaken deterrence. Washington Post, 2023-2-3: (China's) state-run People's Daily said the United States must drop its “obsession” with containing China.   Washington Post, 2023-2-2: Japan must do more, and faster, to avert war over Taiwan...Crudely, Japan seems to be prepared to push back against only Chinese assets that are clearly poised to attack its sovereign territory. ◆ New York Times, 2023-2-1: The United States is increasing its military presence in the Philippines , the Philippines is among the most geographically close to Taiwan...is crucial to countering China in the event it attacks Taiwan   US Naval Institute, 2023-2-1:  The US and Taiwan should plan a defense strategy centered on defeating China in an urban war it is possible that using the geography of the island and its urban citadels is the best hope of success in the face of PLA overmatch  Forbes, 2023-2-2: The United States Could Defend Taiwan—At The Cost Of A Lot Of Submarines Forbes, 2023-1-31: China's lack of capacity for amphibious assault as evidence that it will not be ready for war so quickly.  China's use of civilian ferries in military exercises makes it difficult to predict when, and if, China will invade Taiwan. Fortune, 2023-1-29: WSJ: Seth Cropsey warned of a possible war with China over Taiwan.  "If Lai Ching-te, (a fierce supporter of Taiwan's independence) does win (in 2024), Beijing could move quickly to invade".◆ Wall Street Journal, 2023-1-26:  Will the U.S. Really Defend Taiwan? Washington is strategically unprepared for a crisis and Biden's policies are hampering deterrence   WSJ, 2023-1-23: Taiwan is much more important (than Ukraine) to our security and prosperity. Any tanks we can spare should go to Taipei New York Times, 2023-1-21: Glaser warns that symbolic victories may not be worth the cost of provoking China ... "But the bottom line is, this is a fight over symbolism" said Dan Blumenthal   The Hill, 2023-1-23: the U.S. defense industrial base is not currently equipped to support a protracted conventional war...How do you effectively deter if you don’t have sufficient stockpiles of the kinds of munitions you’re going to need for a China-Taiwan Strait kind of scenario? Bloomberg, 2023-1-21: A more effective structure would de-emphasize vulnerable combat aircraft and surface ships and emphasize instead land-based anti-air and anti-ship capabilities. This is what some commentators have called the "porcupine strategy"  ◆ USNI, 2023-1-23: Sen. John Cornyn also questioned whether Taiwan could “hold out for a couple of weeks … until the cavalry arrives” for its rescue.◆  USA Today, 2023-1-20: Taiwan's envoy to the US says her island has learned lessons from Ukraine's war that will help it deter, defend against an attack by China. Among the lessons: preparing for the kind of all-of-society fight Ukrainians are waging against Russia War On The Rocks, 2023-1-20:  Training, Not Arms Sales, Should Be the New Priority    AFP, 2023-1-21:  Blinken sees lower US tensions with China but risks on Taiwan WSJ, 2023-1-19: The Heritage Foundation's latest 'Index of U.S. Military Strength' warns of declining power in the U.S. Navy and Air Force. Taiwan  is ramping up its spending on defense but its conscription and readiness are underwhelming. CNN, 2023-1-20:  In Taiwan, ex-conscripts feel unprepared for potential China conflict Economist, 2023-1-19: TSMC  is playing a subtle game of diplomacy in which its business interests come first ◆ Star & Strips  2023-1-19: Taiwan defense experts expect few US boots on the ground if war breaks out with China  The WEEK (UK), 2023-1-19:  China's "compounding troubles" —  the demographic challenges, the pandemic and a troubled property market — could prompt President Xi Jingping to take rash action. New York Post, 2023-1-14:  the U.S. needs to speed up its military shipments to Taiwan, specifically long-range bombers with long-range anti-ship missiles. full text

 

TIME, 2023-1-7:  the threat of a costly armed engagement may encourage Beijing to pursue non-military scenarios to try to coerce Taiwan under its control. Washington Post, 2023-1-9: Taiwan needs to be prepared to withstand a lengthy siege but has not stockpiled nearly enough energy, food, medicine or ammunition. It has only about 10 days of natural gas supplies in reserve... Unfortunately, a lot of Taiwanese still don’t seem to grasp how perilous their situation is.  ◆The WEEK (UK), 2023-1-10:  Bloomberg:“calls growing” among American politicians for a commitment to get involved if Beijing invades the island. ◆ Forbes, 2023-1-9:  the extended-range JASSM-ER that helped to win the war in CSIS War game Financial Times, 2023-1-2: Taiwan's move to extend military conscription will not address broader strategic shortfalls... expert has long urged them to build a territorial defence force, a force which could operate as an urban guerrilla under a more decentralised command Forbes, 2023-1-2: Economics, often takes a back seat to geopolitics and national pride (questions of sovereignty and  the hyper-sensitivities of China's leadership) The Hill, 2023-1-3: America's ‘strategic ambiguity’ on Taiwan gets more dangerous by the day  Wall Street Journal, 2022-12-28:  Military conscription is a good start, but leaders in Taipei need to act with greater urgency still   The Hill, 2022-12-30: Mark Esper says Taiwan is “not prepared enough” for a potential Chinese invasion The Guardian, 2022-12-30: Extending conscription may make Taiwan feel safer – but at the cost of alienating its young people  Deutsche Welle, 2022-12-30: US support for Taiwan is double edged: both essential to its survival, and risking dragging Taiwan into a much bigger conflict.   Reuters, 2022-12-28: China slams Taiwan for seeking to use the Taiwanese people as "cannon fodder" by extending compulsory military service from four months to one year New York Times, 2022-12-26: With Record Military Incursions, China Warns Taiwan and U.S.71 military aircraft buzzed the airspace near Taiwan   Politico, 2022-12-27:  The U.S. has pledged to deploy so much firepower to the Indo-Pacific in 2023 that China won’t even consider invading Taiwan. Lawmakers and allies say it’s already too late Modern War Institute at West point, 2022-12-19: Taiwan has mostly accepted the need to shift to a “porcupine strategy” ... implementation has been slow. And Taiwan has neglected to cultivate the guerrilla-style resistance forces that will be necessary to counter an occupation. ◆  Politico (eu), 2022-12-20: the consequences of war in Asia would be just as devastating for the Continent.  if Taiwan wants to alter Beijing's cost-benefit calculus and deter an invasion, it must move boldly and quickly to bolster its defense. ◆  War on the Rocks,2022-12-19:  Biden's National Security Strategy of October 2022 tilted toward strategic ambiguity. ◆  CNN , 2022-12-17:  The population pool is decreasing, so Taiwan is actively considering whether to resume conscription to meet our military needs ◆ The Atlantic, 2022-12-14:  in recent years, China has combined those threats and missiles with other forms of pressure, escalating what the Taiwanese call “cognitive warfare”: not just propaganda but an attempt to create a mindset of surrender. ◆  War on the Rocks,2022-12-14: Is China planning to attack Taiwan? a careful consideration of available evidence says NO    The WEEK (UK), 2022-12-4 : A RAND Corporation study predicted that a yearlong war would cut the U.S.'s gross domestic product by 5 to 10 percent — but it would slash China's by 25 to 35 percent.  ◆ The Atlantic, 2022-12-3: Taiwanese people seem blissfully oblivious of a looming conflict with China. The U.S. can't afford that luxury Economist, 2022-11-29:  many Taiwanese are tired of squabbles over national identity, especially after Ms Tsai's refusal last year to accept an offer of much-needed vaccines from China  Wall Street Journal, 2022-11-28: Taiwan Ruling Party's election drubbing could ease tension with China and persuade Chinese leaders that they can peacefully influence politics there. Wall Street Journal, 2022-11-23:  ...the persistent fecklessness of Taiwanese government's defense policy, whose bottom line is that the island should be defended by others while Taiwan's youth can continue to play video games.◆ Economist, 2022-11-24: Where might conflict flare up in 2023?  Keep an eye on Taiwan and the South China Sea—and the Himalayas  Fortune, 2022-11-19:  U.S. restrictions on selling advanced computer chips to China could make invading Taiwan more tempting to Beijing. U.S. faces ‘immediate Great Depression’ if China seizes Taiwan’s semiconductor industry Wall Street Journal, 2022-11-22: In Taiwan, a Shaky Status Quo Prevails; The people here have little desire either to yield to Beijing or to provoke a war Economist, 2022-11-18: Will Taiwan be the Ukraine of Asia? The status quo is breaking down, making war more likely CNN's meanwhile in China, 2022-11-14:  For Beijing, no red line is starker or more crucial than its claim over Taiwan ...The Chinese believe the US goal is to keep China down so we can contain it. And the US believes China's goal is to make the world safer for authoritarian states, push the US out of Asia and weaken its alliance system CNN, 2022-11-13: Biden's repeated statements on the American obligation to defend Taiwan in the event of a Chinese invasion have done little to lower the temperature.◆Washington Post, 2022-11-13: Congress seeks to arm Taiwan quickly before the bullets start flying Economist, 2022-11-10: International attention is always welcome in Taiwan's quest for global recognition  NY Times, briefing, 2022-11-11: Taiwan is the top issue. Biden has taken a bolder stance on Taiwan than previous U.S. presidents. full text

 

  "Taiwan's midterms"

National Interest, 2022-11-30 : some scholars and commentators in the United States have argued that the election results were a slap in the face to President Joe Biden over his pro-Taiwan stance.
First Post, 2022-12-5:
 Internationally, the triumph of the pro-china party is already being seen as a ‘de-facto’ referendum on cross-strait policy.

CNN, 2022-11-27: Taiwan's President billed midterms as all about China. The pro-independence DPP's losses come as a heavy blow for Tsai as she had tried to frame the election – as a way to send a message against Beijing’s rising bellicosity toward the island.   edition.cnn.com/2022/11/27/asia/taiwan-election-analysis-intl-hnk/index.html
the China-friendly KMT is emerging as the main winner of the day, winning four of the island's six major cities, as well as nine of Taiwan's other 15 smaller counties
 

media

comments

Independent (UK), 2022-11-27 Tsai's DPP campaigned on the political anger against China's stance towards Taiwan, the KMT focussed more on the self-ruled island’s democracy and freedom; Its campaign also pointed to whether the government favoured a local vaccine over imported ones.   msn.com/en-gb/news/world/taiwan-election-president-tsai-ing-wen-resigns-as-ruling-party-chair-after-disastrous-results/ar-AA14BJm0
Global Times (China),
2022-11-28
A loud "No" to DPP authorities' policies on a wide range of topics related to people's livelihoods including the chaotic COVID-19 response and the failure to rein in rising prices, and also demonstrated that Tsai Ing-wen''s "China threat bet" has backfired.  Such results proved the mainstream public opinion on the island was for peace.  Besides, failures in handling frequent scandals violating "values" it boasted about,  corruption, black gold politics and nepotism severely violated what the DPP had pledged to the people,  in many cases DPP sacrificed the interests of ordinary people and local companies such as relaxing a ban on food imports from Japan's sites of Fukushima nuclear disaster, and the US pork with ractopamine, DPP appeared to be incapable of handling the prices and livelihoods crises, and have also mulled lengthening the mandatory military service, a very unpopular idea among the youth.    globaltimes.cn/page/202211/1280569.shtml
China Times (Taiwan),
2022-11-27
A very critical and important factor is the Taiwanese people's fear of war, which made Tsai's "resist China and defend Taiwan" policy fail, possible extending military service to resist China is unpopular among young voters .... Besides, Yilan county magistrates Lin Zimiao (林姿妙) and HsinChu mayoral candidate Gao Hongan(高虹安) both appealed for "suppression by the state apparatus".   chinatimes.com/opinion/20221127002671-262110?chdtv  brief  黃智賢
Bloomberg, 2022-11-26 Taiwan Counts Votes in Elections Set to Shape Presidential Race ; Expert: The winners of elections will have a say in who get picked to in the subsequent presidential elections  news.yahoo.com/taiwan-votes-local-elections-set-000000672.html?fr=sycsrp_catchall

 

Washington Examiner, 2022-11-11: commander of U.S. Strategic Command: This Ukraine crisis  is just the warmup, the Taiwan war may be the next world war Washington Post, 2022-11-10: Beijing might also resort to force to stem what it sees ... a growing Taiwan-centric identity — as well as deepening U.S.-Taiwan security ties   DW (Germany), 2022-11-8: Beijing denies having an accelerated timeline on Taiwan "reunification" ◆Washington Times, 2022-11-8:  It would take at least a decade to design and build new types of ships and aircraft to counter China's threats... US Forces in the Indo-Pacific   may not be able to defend Taiwan successfully today Newsweek, 2022-11-8: Beijing's forces have "a lot of work to do" before attempting what would be one of the most difficult military campaigns in modern history National Interest, 2022-11-4: Washington should mediate a political solution between Moscow and Kyiv and refocus its global efforts on deterring Beijing from invading Taiwan ◆ USNI, 2022-11-7: Pentagon official: China will increase pressure on Taiwan in next two years rather than invade   The Atlantic, 2022-11-7: Because Taiwan is an island, it will be difficult to resupply in the event of hostilities; Taiwan needs support now  ◆ Fox News, 2022-11-4: If China conquers Taiwan, it would be huge blow to US national security, economy FoxNews, Reuters, Hill,Vice, 2022-10-31: US to Put Nuclear-Capable B52s in Australia as Taiwan Invasion Fears Grow   Fortune, 2022-10-30: China's Xi Jinping now has 'unlimited power' and could use Taiwan as a distraction from 'internal problems' CNN, 2022-10-27:  A hot war in Asia remains unlikely in the foreseeable future Washington Post, 2022-10-28: Taiwan, missiles and spying set to be China’s priorities under new Xi term WarOnTheRocks, 2022-10-28:U.S. support for Ukraine and other dynamics have led some to question if the current administration is truly prioritizing Taiwan   SCMP, 2022-10-30: Tsai administration accused of stalling decision due to plan's unpopularity with young voters; Better training needed if Taiwan extends mandatory military service, experts say US News, 2022-10-27:  Russia's Sechin Says U.S. attempts to create its own complex microchip industry showed that "Taiwan's return to its native harbour" was "on schedule"   The Guardian, 2022-10-25: Xi Jinping's party purge prompts fears of greater Taiwan invasion risk     full text

 

World's Best Hospitals 2023
by Newsweek
comparison among Asia's selected ten countries

newsweek.com/rankings/worlds-best-hospitals-2023

Asia's rank

country

total number of top 250  hospitals

1 Japan 18
2 S. Korea 18
3 Australia 7
4 Singapore 5
5 Israel 3
6 India 3
7 Thailand 1
8 UAE 1
9 Taiwan 1
10 Saudi Arabia 0
Taiwan's NTU Hospital ranks No. 249
Asia's China, HK, Macau, Malaysia, New Zealand, etc are not included in survey list - 28 countries
Taiwan's NTU Hospital ranks behind selected hospitals of Thai. and UAE 

 

 The Guardian, 2022-10-25: Almost half of Australians support sending military to help defend Taiwan, poll suggests   New York Times, 2022-10-20:  The longer, written version of Xi's speech also stated that China has strengthened its “strategic initiative for China’s complete reunification,” suggesting greater urgency for its future plans   New York Times, 2022-10-19:  the Chinese leader is unlikely to seek military conflict, either to divert attention from domestic challenges or to act before China's power peaks. BBC, 2022-10-18: China is pursuing unification with Taiwan "on a much faster timeline" than previously expected, Blinken says, Beijing had decided the status quo was no longer acceptable   Newsweek, 2022-10-21: Beijing has responded to the U.S. Navy's warning of a potential Chinese attack on Taiwan as soon as this year by cautioning Washington against any intervention on the sensitive geopolitical issue Daily Express, 2022-10-21: the 'Weakness' of US could 'encourage' China's efforts to blockade Taiwan; Experts urged the US to stand firm against Beijing The Diplomat, 2022-10-21:  recent polling has indicated over 50 percent of Americans support coming to Taiwan’s defense if an invasion were to occur USNI news, 2022-10-18:  China is looking to speed up its timeline for taking control of Taiwan to 2027 CNBC, 2022-10-18: Political watchers say the (CCP Congress) speech showed that Xi is not be keen to take Taiwan by force Reuters,2022-10-17: Analysis-Xi's new generals face tough military challenges post-congress;  the conundrum for the PLA is the lack of operational experience  New York Times,2022-10-16: On Taiwan, Xi Jinping warns (at the Congress) against international 'interference' ...China is still exerting what Xi also uses in the speech — ‘strategic patience’◆ NPR, 2022-10-18: there's evidence to suggest that from China's point of view, what they really want is control, not that kind of symbolic unification VOA,2022-10-16: Despite Tough Words, Japan Might Not Enter a Taiwan War Washington Post, 2022-10-16: Xi: the party had already created a “new choice” for humanity with its unique path to modernization — a nod to China's emergence as an alternative to Western democracies.  The SUN (UK),2022-10-16: an authority on China's military, recently warned the country is convinced it needs to hit America "hard and early " in a surprise Pearl Harbor-style attack to invade Taiwan.   full text

 

Washington Post, 2022-10-12: Xi's looming third term in China raises threat of war over Taiwan... “Before, leaders talked about unification as something to be achieved in the long run. Now, it's number one on the agenda.” Wall Street Journal, 2022-10-10: Mr. Xi may be disinclined to wait, given the risk of a more assertive president in Taipei in May 2024 or Washington in January 2025. Beijing's recent rhetoric has been consistent with this hypothesis ◆ Economist, 2022-10-10:  In Washington, there is talk of intelligence that the pla has been told to be in a position to take Taiwan by 2027...The liberal political order is at stake CBS News,2022-10-9: while much of the world thought an invasion might be imminent, polls showed that a majority of Taiwanese think that is unlikely any time soon, if ever..."This is not a matter of if they will invade, it's a matter of when they will invade"   NY Times, 2022-10-5:  the U.S. was intensifying efforts to build a giant stockpile of weapons in Taiwan, turning it into a “porcupine” bristling with armaments to discourage aggression from mainland China  Forbes, 2022-10-3: Defense Secretary Austin: Chinese Invasion Of Taiwan Not 'Imminent'; “What we do see is China moving to establish what we would call a new normal".◆ FoxNews, 2022-10-2: soon-to-be Secretary-General of ASEAN: China 'would not' invade Taiwan if Beijing believes it owns the island  Chicago Tribune, 2022-9-23: if China needs to be confronted militarily (and that's unlikely), Taiwan is precisely the wrong place to try to do that Wall Street Journal,2022-9-19: China Is Capable of Blockading Taiwan, U.S. Navy Commander Says  CBS News,2022-9-18: Biden tells <60 Minutes> U.S. forces, U.S. men and women would defend Taiwan, but White House says this is not official U.S. policy ◆ Wall Street Journal,2022-9-19: China Is Capable of Blockading Taiwan, U.S. Navy Commander Says NY Times,2022-9-10: Drones -the latest front in China's mounting campaign of intimidation and psychological warfare full text

 

NY Times, 2022-9-4: Washington is increasingly wary that an emboldened China might invade Taiwan in the coming years. ◆ Washington Examiner, 2022-9-6: Taiwan sees Bidens political-fears weakening us-strategy to counter china   The Hill, 2022-9-6: none of the three governments that could begin a war over Taiwan — those in Washington, Beijing and Taipei — should see war as in its interest...Taiwan will be extremely hard for us to defend ◆ abc news, 2022-9-5: Military reserves, Civil Defense worry Taiwan as China looms ◆ Washington Examiner, 2022-9-5: Xi could use force against Taiwan amid 'challenges from within' ◆Daily Express (UK), 2022-8-29: WW3 looming as 'no good options' remain in 'dangerous' China-US conflict over Taiwan   NY Times, 2022-8-25: China could try to impose a blockade to force the island into concessions or as a precursor to wider military action  NY Times, 2022-8-21: critics argued the tensions over Taiwan showed that Washington needed stronger military and economic strategies. War on the Rocks, 2022-8-22: Some five to nine missiles passed over Taiwan en route to targets east of the main island Washington Post, 2022-7-3:  these steps (asymmetric warfare) may not be enough to repel a far more powerful opponent like China. Taiwan's mandatory military service ... spend more time doing menial labor than learning combat skills. Tactics taught are comparable to those (Gulf War or the Vietnam War) N.Y. Times, 2022-6-19:A Looming Threat /  ...Taiwan politicians have electoral considerations. Extending military conscription, for example, would probably not be very popular New York Times, 2022-6-13: Taiwan's defenses are, by many accounts, ill-equipped and understaffed...Should China invade, Taiwan's defenses will almost certainly crumble unless the United States and its allies help.  AFP, France24, 2022-6-10: China will 'not hesitate to start war' if Taiwan declares independence, Beijing says ◆ NY Times, 2022-6-10: American officials ... worry that China's leader, Xi Jinping, may be willing to go to war over Taiwan in the coming years. CNN, 2022-6-1: China has the power to take Taiwan, but it would cost an extremely bloody price ...China is more likely to emulate the "shock and awe" bombardments that preceded the US' invasions of Iraq. Daily Express (UK), 2022-5-30: Putin is winning his war, China Taiwan is next and that will be so much deadlier   full text

 

 

Biden "U.S. forces, U.S. men and women would defend Taiwan"  (CBS,2022-9-18)
 CNN (US), 2022-9-20 looks like the US has moved from ambiguity to deterrence...  Biden's remarks don't necessarily equate to how he would behave in a real crisis. edition.cnn.com/2022/09/19/world/joe-biden-taiwan-answer-analysis/index.html  
Bloomberg, 2022-9-20 “Such comments will do more to feed Beijing's sense of urgency than they will bolster deterrence” Taiwan's leaders could move closer to independence — U.S. allies like Japan or South Korea will almost certainly be made more uneasy... risks pulling them into a war    msn.com/en-us/news/world/biden-s-vow-to-defend-taiwan-makes-us-policy-shift-explicit/ar-AA123qxX
Japan Times (Japan), 2022-9-20 Cornell prof. called Biden's remarks “dangerous",  this new combo (a pledge to send troops + decisions about independence are Taiwan’s) suggests an unconditional commitment, U.S. is issuing Taiwan a blank check japantimes.co.jp/news/2022/09/20/asia-pacific/politics-diplomacy-asia-pacific/biden-taiwan-remarks-uncertainty/
Washington Examiner (US),
2022-9-
20
wrong to commit to Taiwan's defense unambiguously,  two key concerns here. (1) Taiwan's defense spending remains ludicrously low in face of the existential threat it faces. (2) It's one thing to tell a pollster that you're willing to fight and die for your country. It's a different thing to take painstaking steps to prepare for that eventuality. And the hard truth is that far too few Taiwanese are currently taking those steps msn.com/en-us/news/world/the-two-problems-with-bidens-taiwan-defense-pledge/ar-AA120KGw
 Politico, 2022-9-19 The big question is, what are the costs we're really willing to pay?” Stanford's Skylar Mastro said. politico.com/news/2022/09/19/biden-leaves-no-doubt-strategic-ambiguity-toward-taiwan-is-dead-00057658
Washington Post, 2022-9-19 Yet presidential pronouncements alone can only deter China so much... Congress should provide Mr. Biden and his successors with a stronger set of legislative instructions washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/09/19/biden-china-taiwan-60-minutes/

DW (Germany), 2022-9-19 scholars: "it can lead to very different results than what Biden might be thinking he has the capacity to do,"," US "strategic ambiguity is becoming more strategic and less ambiguous." dw.com/en/biden-us-forces-would-defend-taiwan-if-china-invades/a-63166248
Le Monde (France), 2022-9-19 Alors que l’occupant de la Maison Blanche a tenu des propos forts sur le dossier taïwanais dimanche soir, la Chine a dénoncé « une grave violation de [son] engagement important à ne pas soutenir l’indépendance de Taïwan .   lemonde.fr/international/article/2022/09/19/joe-biden-affirme-que-les-etats-unis-defendraient-taiwan-en-cas-d-invasion-chinoise_6142183_3210.html
 France 24 (France), 2022-9-19  most explicit statement so far on the issue, something sure to anger Beijing.Biden's Asia policy czar, Kurt Campbell, has in the past rejected any move to "strategic clarity" over Taiwan, saying there were "significant downsides" to such an approachmsn.com/en-gb/news/world/biden-says-us-forces-would-defend-taiwan-if-china-invades/ar-AA11YIsO
Daily Express (UK), 2022-9-19 Bonnie Glaser: " if Mr Biden makes such pledges he needs the "capability" to back them up, If President Biden plans to defend Taiwan, then he should make sure the U.S. military has the capability to do so", “"Rhetorical support that isn't backed up by real capabilities is unlikely to strengthen deterrence express.co.uk/news/world/1671100/Joe-Biden-Taiwan-China-Xi-Jinping-CBS-Nancy-Pelosi-White-House-ont
Bloomberg (US), 2022-9-19 Expert Bonnie Glaser: China has long assumed that the US would intervene to defend Taiwan, so these statements don’t change PLA plans, Prof. Lev Nachman: The worry is that this will exacerbate Taiwan's current high-tension moment rather than reduce it.。” Bloomberg     msn.com/en-us/news/world/biden-says-us-would-defend-taiwan-from-unprecedented-attack/ar-AA11Yf55

 

No guarantee that U.S. military will hold the same view as Biden to defend Taiwan

♣ Foreign Policy, Politico, 2022-10-2: Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin declined to directly endorse President Joe Biden’s statement that the U.S. military would defend Taiwan   politico.com/news/2022/10/02/lloyd-austin-china-taiwan-biden-00059922
The Hill, 2022-10-3: US defense chief sidesteps questions on Biden’s pledge to defend Taiwan news.yahoo.com/us-defense-chief-sidesteps-questions-200504858.html
VICE, 2022-9-28:  no guarantee that the next U.S. president will hold the same view as Biden, given the lack of a formal commitment by the U.S. military to intervene in the event of an attack by the PLA  vice.com/en/article/m7gp7v/taiwan-defense-china-invasion-conscripts

 

Can "silicon shield" protect Taiwan?

New York Times, 2022-9-9 Taiwan is protected by something far more subtle —The "silicon shield"...If it is clear that China will be better off with a steady flow of chips from Taiwan, peace is likely to prevail
New York Times, 2022-8-29 Analysts debate how much protection China's reliance on Taiwan gives it.  Some argue that calculations over supply chains are insignificant in a decision over war.
 National Interest, 2022-5-15 Taiwan's “silicon shield”—the name for a strategy that entrusts the island's defense to both Chinese and American reliance on its semiconductors—is an outmoded concept that burdens the United States, emboldens Taiwan, and fails to deter China
VOA News, 2021-5-10 Song Hong, assistant general director at the Institute of World Economics and Politics under the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences  shrugged off the geopolitical implications of Taiwan’s silicon shield, saying that China views Taiwanese issues as domestic affairs and will not be deterred from its goals by U.S. action

 

   New York Times, 2022-5-27: A 2018 congressionally-mandated assessment warned that America could face a “decisive military defeat” in a war over Taiwan NY Times, 2022-5-24: the US is trying to walk a fine line between deterrence and provocation... risk pushing President Xi Jinping of China to order an attack on Taiwan NY Times, 2022-5-24: Former presidents have hinted that the United States would fight for Taiwan but have otherwise remained studiedly vague...Taiwan's defense budget... remains scandalously low   New York Times, 2022-5-7: US presses Taiwan to buy missiles and smaller arms for asymmetric warfare (Suited to Win Against China);  But some Taiwanese defense officials are resistant. Guardian, 2022-4-24: ... waiting will only allow Taiwan to improve readiness and build support... The risks of sleepwalking into conflict may well be growing  Economist, 2022-4-20: the main lesson that China will draw from Ukraine is the need for speed—ideally achieving victory within days; Taiwan can learn ...Fighting spirit and the right Western arms may stymie a powerful foe  Bloomberg, 2022-4-21: Putin's Struggles in Ukraine May Embolden Xi on Taiwan...use overwhelming force Taipei Times, 2022-4-25: Richard D. Fisher, Jr.: Xi likely will not repeat Putin’s failure at the outset to use his new very low-yield nuclear weapons to devastate Ukrainian resistance   Wall street Journal, 2022-4-18: Kyiv's successful use of internet to counter Moscow highlights Taiwan's reliance on undersea internet cables that China could cut  Daily Mail, 2022-4-10: China accelerates work on more than one HUNDRED missile  silos that could house nuclear weapons capable of reaching U.S. soil -  to deter America from intervening in conflict over Taiwan  full text

 

 Wall street Journal, 2022-3-29: Moves under discussion in Taiwan are still far from the kind of major revamp that some experts in the U.S. and elsewhere say is needed to upgrade Taiwan's military   New York Times, 2022-3-20: If Russia succeeds in overtaking Ukraine, it increases the danger for Taiwan.  TIME, 2022-3-18: most analysts say that the island would not be able to stop a full-scale invasion on its own—and Ukraine's situation has sparked debate over whether anyone would come to Taiwan's aid   Politico, 2022-3-14: Taiwan's military may be rightly criticized for its poorly coordinated forces, and its government has been hesitant to invest in its own defense......China's deep integration into the global economy and the leverage of Beijing's $1,068 billion in treasury bonds would make Western sanctions more painful to implement

  Washington Post, 2022-3-4: Taiwan's leaders try to calm fears over Ukraine invasion, but citizens worry their island will be next Economist, 2022-2-26:  Parallels with Taiwan colour Asian views of the war in Ukraine - Some fear a Chinese invasion has become more likely  New York Times, 2022-2-23: With some seeing parallels to Ukraine, Taiwan steps up its defenses  CNN, 2022-2-3: China's leaders may be watching Ukraine with an eye on Taiwan USA Today, Yahoo, 2022-2-10, "Chinese Taipei" , the label implies a link to China... younger people have said they feel increasingly distant culturally from the other side. Brookings, 2022-2-7: why is unification so unpopular in Taiwan? It's the PRC political system; A majority of our respondents — 56% — said Taiwanese culture was similar to Chinese culture.  72% rated China's government as at least somewhat unfriendly. SCMP, 2022-2-12: “China's theory of victory is that... punishment and intimidation would eventually inflict enough pain and psychological stress that Taiwan would capitulate to Beijing's rule,”  Guardian, NPR, Foxnews, CNN, 2022-1-28: China's ambassador to US warns of possible military conflict over Taiwan Foreign Affairs, 2022-2-1: the United States is on track to lose a war over Taiwan. The US needs Battle Force 2025. New York Times, 2022-1-25: China could use economic coercion, cyberoperations and hybrid tactics to try to seize or harm Taiwan's semiconductor industry — Biden promised he would work to bring production of semiconductor chips back to the United States. Washington Post, 2022-1-24: Defending Taiwan is a worthy goal. But are we ready for heavy casualties? it would be a grave mistake for the United States to promise to defend Taiwan without preparing its public — and its soldiers — for the tough fight they could face ◆ New York post, 2022-1-21: Rep. Michael McCaul predicts Chinese invasion of Taiwan after Winter Olympics   New York times, 2022-1-19: China's Growing Menace Hardens Island's Identity   France24, NY Post, Daily Mail(UK), 2021-12-30: China warns US will pay 'unbearable price' for backing Taiwan NY Times, 2021-12-10: As China has built up its military presence, the U.S. has sought to widen its alliances in the region. A major potential flash point is Taiwan Times (UK), 2021-12-10: The US won’t fight to save Taiwan or Ukraine   NY Times, 2021-11-29:  China is developing advanced weapons, leading U.S. officials to push for the first nuclear talks   The Hill, 2021-11-22:  as things currently stand, the U.S. can't deter Beijing NY Times, 2021-10-22: Biden Said the U.S. Would Protect Taiwan. But It's Not That Clear-Cut.  American presidents have spent decades trying to sidestep the question of how forcefully the United States would come to the aid of Taiwan if China invaded it or, more likely, tried to slowly strangle the island in an effort to force it back under the control of the mainland.   Reuters  2021-10-23 : analysts dismissed the president's remark (US has a commitment to defend Taiwan) as a gaffe it was "patently not true". "A.confused  U.S. policy,  weakens  deterrence"    DW (Germany), 2021-10-23: "In fiscal year 2020, Taiwan was  the largest customer of US arms... growing pressure from Congress to ... explicitly commit to defending Taiwan and thus to deterring Beijing....Washington is "slowly adjusting" its course. Washington Post, 2021-10-22: Biden delivered straight talk on Taiwan — contradicting a deliberately ambiguous U.S. policy. Did he misspeak? ...Biden, like others before him, appears to be grappling with the often obtuse language of the U.S.-Taiwan relationship Global Times, 2021-10-22: 'Defend Taiwan' can hardly be seen as a slip of the tongue

   full text

 

★  What Should The US Do If China Invades Taiwan ?  
TIPP Poll  2022-3-2 ~ 3-4, 1318 adults, online survey

  come to defense of Taiwan
directly via MILITARY action
economic sanctions combination of military action
 and economic sanctions
allow China to take Taiwan not sure
overall 14% 27% 23% 6% 29%
Democrats 15 33 22 6 24
Republicans 16 27 27 n/a 25
Independents 11 22 24 9 34
Conservatives 17 27 28 6 21
Moderates 12 26 19 6 36
Liberals 15% 32% 25% 5% 22%
19fortyfive.com/2022/04/a-chinese-invasion-of-taiwan-what-response-would-americans-support/     TIPP Insights

 

 

★  Defending Taiwan by Taiwanese ??
some human factors ~

President Tsai I. W. youngsters the public
VICE, 2022-9-28: president's prescriptions have been piecemeal, and there is no national plan to overhaul the military. (developing asymmetric warfare capabilities as US experts advise)

Roll Call, 2022-9-28: ...overhaul its military reservist program — our general public, especially young parents, those people from 40 to 50 and their children, will fight against that policy... “It's hard for the ruling party to do it !" Younger voters are a critical base of support for president Tsai's Democratic Progressive Party.
 

New York Times, 2022-6-19: politicians have electoral considerations ( military conscription reform)

Roll Call, 2022-9-28: Most people do not want to join the military... The March opinion poll : lower levels of support (56 percent) among the 20-24 age group for lengthening Taiwan's mandatory military service to one year.

 

China Times (Taiwan), 2022-9-28: 81.5% of Taiwanese youth oppose lengthening Taiwan's mandatory military service to one year.   World media wrongly report Taiwanese people are willing to be on the battlefield.   chinatimes.com/opinion/20220927005188-262101?chdtv


PS:
By law, all able-bodied men in South Korea must serve 18-21 months in the military under a conscription system; In Israel - men 32 months and women 24 months, minimum.


axios,2022-9-27:  ...the common belief in Taiwan that if China were to invade, Taiwan would have no choice but to surrender immediately.

Economist, 2022-3-5: Taiwanese seem too uninterested to fight to defend their land.  Taiwan's sloth in reforming its defence capabilities ...
 

Washington Examiner, 2022-9-20: It's one thing to tell a pollster that you're willing to fight and die for your country. It's a different thing to take painstaking steps to prepare for that eventuality. And the hard truth is that far too few Taiwanese are currently taking those steps
 

Brookings, 2021-1-22: Only 23% thought that democracy was more important than economic development.  16% believed that protecting political freedom was more important than reducing economic inequality.

 

Global Times, 2022-10-10: a poll shows that only 41.4 percent gave a definite "yes" to the determination to sacrifice themselves to defend the island, according to Taiwan-based media globaltimes.cn/page/202210/1276853.shtml

  full text

 

 


★  migrant workers in Taiwan     https://intlhumanrights.com/TaiwanForeignWorkers.htm
 

world media

foreign laborers abuses

SeaFoodSource, 2020-10-1 Taiwan had largely overlooked the rights of migrant fishers  -   immigrant workers with an average of just 2 to 3 hours sleep. If no fish were caught, they were forced to work up to 34 hours straight
Green Peace, 2022-4-25 The high seas fishing industry uses cost-cutting and illegal fishing tactics, forced labor, and other human rights abuses to stay profitable. greenpeace.org/international/press-release/53401/nine-indicted-abusing-crew-taiwan-fishing-vessel-dawang/

The Green Peace Org., 2022-9-29: Taiwan-caught fish once again on Department of Labor's (DOL) List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor

Financial Times (UK), 2021-6-22
ft.com/content/4269650e-7660-4b80-b294-f81b4368784c
"It has now become extremely common for employers to lock their migrant workers up... ”
The New York Times, 2021-6-18
nytimes.com/2021/06/18/world/asia/taiwan-migrant-labor-covid.html
In Taiwan, some foreign tech workers are confined indoors to tackle an outbreak; Activists say that the measures discriminate against migrant laborers.
Heritage Org., 2021 Index of Economic Freedom In "Labor Freedom" index, Taiwan ranks No. 91 worldwide
 The Guardian (UK), 2021-5-16

theguardian.com/world/2021/may/16/lockdowns-and-panic-buying-in-taiwan-as-covid-cases-rise

Many foreign laborers from Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines, entered Taiwan by the name of care-taker but actually illegally worked in these porn parlors in Taipei's Wanhua district,
Brookings, 2021-6-25, brookings.edu/blog/order-from-chaos/2021/06/25/taiwans-vitality/  the harsh lockdowns in crowded dormitories of mostly Southeast Asian workers at some technology manufacturing companies have underscored the discrimination that has long been present in Taiwan against peoples of certain nationalities
Business Insider, 2021-5-20 businessinsider.com/taiwan-covid-19-paradise-health-politics-policy-cdc-2021-5 Taiwan ... double standards and stigma still found their way.
Equal Times org., 2021-7-30 (equaltimes.org/taiwan-s-foreign-factory-workers?lang=en#.YQSC6i7iu70) Taiwan’s foreign factory workers face rights violations amid latest Covid outbreak.  “We feel like prisoners. It’s like the company controls every aspect of our lives !"  
US Country Reports on Human Rights Practices released at 2021-3-30 Foreign workers were often reluctant to report employer abuses for fear the employer would terminate their contract
RT TV news (Russia), UDN, 2022-1-24 Two Indonesian migrant laborers got penalty fine in the amount of NY$100,000 (about USD 3,300) for stepping out of their CovID-19 quarantine hotel room for about one minute.

 

 

globalpropertyguide.com  

House Prices/GDP per Capita in Taiwan compared to Asia
The formula is: (Price per square metre / GDP per capita)*100

rank country ratio
1  India 627.55x
2 Cambodia 227.93x
3 China 145.62x
4 Philippines 135.02x
5 Vietnam 104.97x
6 Thailand 89.22x
7 Indonesia 72.00x
8 Hong Kong 65.59x
9 Taiwan 46.11x
10 Japan 41.98x
11 Malaysia 36.71x
12 Singapore 27.14x
globalpropertyguide.com/Asia/Taiwan/price-gdp-per-cap

 

 

 

    New York Times ,  2021-10-16: The Kaohsiung building (46 killed in a fire) is one of many aging structures across the island that have fallen into severe disrepair as a result of weak management and government neglect...  the lack of support for Taiwan's rapidly aging population... older buildings that had been constructed under outdated safety guidelines were often overlooked   nytimes.com/2021/10/15/world/asia/taiwan-building-fire.html
  《 Bloomberg》 ,  2021-7-1 (bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-07-01/taiwan-s-red-hot-housing-defies-challenges-from-covid-to-china?srnd=prognosis) :  Taiwan home prices may reach new highs by the end of the year, residential and office deals in Taiwan's six largest cities surged 27.9% in April from a year earlier....The government is not bringing its ultimate game to fight the overly-hot market
 

 

 

★  numbeo.com/property-investment/country_result.jsp?country=Taiwan

city Price to Income ratio Price to Rent ratio, city center Affordability Index
Taipei 32.09 72.56 0.53
New Taipei City 21.48 63.59 0.77
Taichung 21.07 64.02 0.79
Kaohsiung 13.61 39.95 1.20

 

 

 

Taiwan's corruption

USA Country Reports on Human Rights practices,  2021-3-30 There were allegations of vote buying by candidates and supporters of both major political parties (KMT and DPP) in  Presidential election in 2020. 

N.Y. Times, 12-1-2019: the soft underbelly of Taiwanese politics: patronage networks. 
They continue to allow
community leaders, farmers’ associations and even
 organized-crime figures to buy votes
 
( NY Times, opinion :
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/01/opinion/china-taiwan-election.html ).

 

 


 

Transparency International, Germany /  Global Corruption Barometer, released in 2022 -
comparisons among main Asian countries

country

people who think
 government
 corruption
 is a big problem
public service
users
 paid a bribe
in the previous
 12 months
public
clinic,
health
centres
utilities police gov.
officials
local
gov.
officials
judges,
magis-
trates
corruption
level
increased
in previous
12months
Taiwan 90% 17% 9% 28% 67% 19% 20% 15% 38%
Japan 84 2 2 4 10 7 26 6 36
Malaysia 71 13 5 11 30 28 16 12 20
China 62 28 26 17 16 18 18 13 39
S Korea 55 10 6 14 8 26 42 24 17
transparency.org/en/countries/taiwan

 

 

Transparency International, Taiwan's corruption index ranks No. 7 in Asia & Pacific in 2021

Transparency Int'l   ,  CORRUPTION PERCEPTIONS INDEX, 2021

country of Asia & Pacific score
New Zealand score 88  No.1
Singapore   No.4
Hong Kong No. 12
Australia No. 18
Japan No. 18
UAE No. 24
Bhutan No. 25
Taiwan score 68 No. 25
transparency.org/en/cpi/2021

US Country Reports on Human Rights Practices released at 2022-4-12 : In 2020 presidential and legislative elections, President Tsai Ing-wen won re-election,...there were allegations of vote buying by candidates and supporters of both major political parties.

US 
Country Reports on Human Rights Practices , 2021-3-30

        state.gov/reports/2020-country-reports-on-human-rights-practices/taiwan/   Significant human rights issues included: the existence of criminal libel laws and serious acts of corruption Authorities prosecuted officials including incumbent and former legislators involved in a high-profile bribery case.
 


 

Taiwan's press freedom
RSF 2022-5-3  rsf.org/en/index

Sociocultural context Reuters Institute survey in 2021: The Taiwanese have one of the lowest levels of trust in media amongst democracies
Political context The media landscape, although free, is impaired by a strong political polarisation, undeclared advertising, sensationalism, and the pursuit of profit which hinders the work of journalists and can prevent citizens from accessing objective information.
Legal framework Over the past decades, few concrete measures have been taken by consecutive Taiwanese governments to improve journalists’ editorial independence and encourage media to raise the quality of public debate.
Economic Indicator  No .49,  Social  Indicator No 57,  Legislative  Indicator  No 40,   Political  Indicator No33, No. 38 Press Freedom Index

 

 

Trust in news ?   ★  Reuters Institute, 2021

Trust in news overall    31% Trust in news I used   38%
Trust in news  in search 29% Trust in social media   21%
Public service television remains the most trusted in our survey, followed by the economic news media (CommonWealth and Business Weekly). The rest of the news brands in the polarised media landscape are trusted by one group, but distrusted by another.

 

 

 Taiwan dominates the global production of computer chips /   BBC, 2022-1-12, source: The Military Balnce, IISS 2021

Taiwan S. Korea China Other
65% 18% 5% 12%

news.yahoo.com/china-taiwan-really-simple-guide-142542268.html

 nytimes.com/2022/01/26/us/politics/computer-chip-shortage-taiwan.html

 

 

Foreign Policy, 1-22-2021 :  Taiwan seeks assurances from Biden admin., but Biden and his team
 are likely to resist using Taiwan as a cudgel against China the way Trump did. 
 Foreign Policy, 12-14-2016 named Taiwan President Tsai as
one of leading thinkers of 2016 for "Poking the bear" .

 

Trump treats Taiwan a leverage, one China policy as bargaining chips

 

Salmon is poking the bear ?  Taiwan suffers !

 

 

The Interpreter , The LOWY Institute ( Australia ), 6-16-2020 :
treating Taiwan as a conduit to frustrate Beijing imperils Taiwan’s security.
 Already many in China’s party-state suspect that the US intends to promote Taiwan independence, ...
The risk here is that U.S. policy encourages an overreaction from China, upsetting the
cross-straits status quo or whatever remains of it, and
then the United States abandons Taiwan to deal with the consequences.
 

 

 

DW (Germany) ,11-10-2020:The Biden administration will have to make it quite clear
from the outset whether it is ready to go to war for Taiwan's sake


Japan Sankei Shimbun ( 產經新聞),10-29-2020:Japan's DM 岸信夫: Given military imbalance of
both sides, anything can happen, Taiwan must be very cautious

 

WSJ,10-13-2020:  continued ambiguity in the face of Xi's escalating rhetoric and provocative movements by his armed forces
in the Taiwan Strait presents the greater risk of a confrontation as dangerous  as the Cuban Missile Crisis
 

  Bloomberg news 3-14-2018: In the future, Taiwan will suffer even more, as it

gets caught  in the middle between a stronger China and a inward-looking US...

 

Chicago Tribune, Yahoo News,10-12-2020: We should defend Taiwan... Yet, to be effective as a deterrent, Beijing has to see it as
 a defensive move by Washington, aimed at preserving the status quo, and not as part of a new offensive against China
 ◆ Economist,10-9-2020:  China could wipe out Taiwan’s navy and air force ...  Taiwan’s preparedness and its will to fight both look shaky. 
Many insiders are accordingly pessimistic about its ability to hold out.


New York Times at  4-18-2018: The U.S. and Taiwan are seen

as heading in a direction that is getting perilously close to

 Chinese red lines...... (Taiwan president Tsai  stated)

" Many  people say we are pawns of other people ......"   

 

 

   CNN 2-19-2020:  TW president: "What we are expecting is, after withstanding the first wave of
Chinese attacks ourselves, the rest of the world would stand up to exert strong pressure on China" ....
"Taiwan as an underdog facing down the growing might of Beijing"
...    Taiwan military

 

 

 Washington Post, 8-20-2018: 
Taiwan's precarious role in the China-US spat  !
(Trump adm.'s Taiwan policy is unpredictable); 

 

 United Daily, 1-4-2020, editorial opinion :  Taiwan functions as a chess piece to block China
in American's containment chessboard, if Taiwan doesn't follow every order American gives ,
The US Indo-Pacific strategy has a gap ...

 

New York Times 9-5-2019:  it would also be a catastrophe if Taiwan were blockaded or squashed into submission,
because Taiwan ...
and stands in the way of any Chinese projection into the Pacific or toward, say, Okinawa.

 

Independent UK, 7-23-2019: China "ready to go to war" if Taiwan tries to gain independence

( white paper released by the Chinese gov.).

 

 

 


 

pic: This websites-group was ranked No.1 by keyword
"comment Taiwan" on US Google at  1-1-2021, 9-19-2019, 2-5-2020, 3-1-2020

 

 

! Taiwan, root out
all the ugly !!

 
   

    

 

   

a a survey to Taiwanese people since years ago  (in various versions)

 

To all the people:

 

According to Amnesty Int'l report years ago, "over half the world's government continue to use torture against their own citizens"

 

Is Taiwan a country which should be ranked latter half of the world ?

 

Taiwan had numerous lousy records of fooling Taiwanese and even the world, e.g., murdering American journalist 江南, making Taiwan white terror again, the latest one is trying to hide minor news about birds-flu at 1-2-2018 (BBC 2012 reported too).

 

This website is much better in credibility, reliability and objective degree than the mouthpiece of the government.

 

To accelerate Taiwan's reform, please provide with what you saw, knew or experienced about attacks or persecutions on someone in the way of demonization, hi-tech tortures, mouth of words, giving dog a name and hang it, Orwellian terror, murders ...... by the state apparatus.

 

Scary political climate for years has made Taiwanese very obedient, hope some may speak out this time.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To the state apparatus:

 

Any rats doing cat's job, or cats with rat's genes in state apparatus should be

completely revealed and eradicated ! 

"Police" should be open as the day, not hiding at dark corner underground, doing & speaking sneaky things like a crime.

Bring everything to light ! Not keeping people mis-informed or half informed (worse than a lie) any more.

Obscurantism and avoiding admitting mistakes only prove rats' intention of repeating mistakes, as US Obama said.

 

 

 

  ps: straight-forward words pls. to avoid any mis-interpretations

  Below is Chinese version survey

 

 

 

 

 

Survey for catching rats or cats with rat-genes

 

 

 

致台灣百姓

 

根據近年來國內外研究與報告台灣是個 '惡名昭彰' 的國家 !

台灣 是否還隱藏諸多施加人民之惡,尚未被揭露??

 

intlHumanRights.com網站群,  中英文"評論台灣"排名國際第一 (click 美歐俄中 排名第一), 經Google, Bing, Yahoo, Metager, Facebook, Twitter...遍傳全球百國,公正、 客觀與可信度非 '為官喉舌'力能企及,

為加速台灣改革除惡務盡,敬請仗義「直」言 ,如您經歷知悉 如有羶犬奸吏 謀害、戕傷人權、Orwellian恐怖、散播耳語(常備有晃子,藉口)妖魔化攻擊特定對象 等等情事,請惠予提供 具體合法證據,以便全球清譽機構及研究單位, 紀錄國家行徑、分析真相全貌、 發現包藏之禍心 (請直白文字以免誤譯或解讀錯誤)

 

國家機器不應再利用人民長年被迫養成的謹小慎微台灣人的名字不 應再順民 !!

 

本survey只針對公共議題政治迫害,不包括一般 刑民犯 罪, 多年來且將繼續  隨機選擇政府機構、跨國知名企業、以及個人,挖掘可能之犯行。

 

 

致國家機器:

 

法國媒體le monde diplomatic將台灣畫成發抖 躲貓的老鼠(click !) 國家機器如 真有黑幕掩護之 白色恐怖應主動"暗投"別做行不由徑 的老鼠 或老鼠基因的貓 !! 如美國Obama所說, 公開認錯 才代表不貳過

 

 

 

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ps : 政治犧牲「民生」「民主」、 司法不獨立女權 不佳剝削外勞欺善怕惡 貪污腐敗、 涉嫌詐騙海盜」...... 詳 intlHumanRights.com/Taiwan.htm

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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pic: This websites-group was ranked No.1 by keyword "comment Taiwan"
on Google, 12-4-2016, 11-24-2016, 1-1-2017, 9-29-2017, 2-20-2018

 

 

pic: This websites-group was ranked No.1 by keyword "understand Taiwan" on Google, 1-6-2017 , 9-29-2017, 2-20-2018

 

 

 

 

 


 

 

pic: This websites-group was ranked No.1 by keyword
  "
understand Taiwan" on Bing,
at 5-8-2017, 9-25-2017, 2-20-2018

 

 

 

pic: This websites-group was ranked No.1 by keyword "comment Taiwan"
on Bing, at 5-8-2017 , 9-25-2017, 2-20-2018