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♦ Taiwan's
Trump problem
♦♦♦
US
supports
Taiwan
independence
?
♦♦♦
China-Taiwan
war
♦♦♦
Trump's
tariffs
♦♦♦
how
world
backs Beijing's claim
♦♦♦
Trump's
defense policy
on Taiwan
♦♦♦
unprecedented
recall
♦♦♦
political
vendetta
♦♦♦
Lawmakers
brawl
♦♦♦
more
♦♦♦
resource
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China fumes at Trump after the State Department drops website wording on not supporting Taiwan independence |
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| ♣ New York Post, 2025-2-18 | The US agreed to acknowledge the so-called One China Policy and recognize Taiwan as part of China in the 1970s under then-President Nixon. But while the US has agreed to the One China Policy on paper, in practice, it has historically shown “strategic ambiguity” on the issue. |
| ♣ NBC News, 2025-2-17 | The State Department website has also been changed to add a reference to Taiwan's cooperation with a Pentagon technology and semiconductor development project and to say the U.S. will continue to support Taiwan's participation in international organizations, “including membership where applicable. China has consistently opposed Taiwan's membership in international bodies such as the WHO. |
| ♣ Independent (UK), 2025-2-17 | Beijing accused the Trump administration of "gravely backpedalling" ; It is not the first time the State Department has removed the phrase. It did so in May 2022 but restored it a few weeks later after a strong protest from China. |
| ♣ USA Today , 2025-2-17 | US drops website wording on not supporting Taiwan independence, prompting praise from Taiwan island. the State Department website reads in the update posted : "We expect cross-Strait differences to be resolved by peaceful means, free from coercion, in a manner acceptable to the people on both sides of the (Taiwan) Strait." |
| ♣ The Hill , 2025-2-9 | The president's rhetorical pivot from threats to compliments suggests that he may smell a deal in the air. But US concessions (such as agreeing to "oppose" rather than "not support" Taiwan independence...) would make the U.S. strategic position in Asia increasingly vulnerable, as they leave Beijing with openings for future exploitation. |
| ◆ Washington Post, 2025-2-18 | Each statement by Trump that degrades the principle that territorial boundaries must not be redrawn by force or coercion might embolden China on Taiwan. political scientist Graham Allison : “Taiwan will be depreciated in the triangular relationship”,“I see no evidence whatever that [Trump] believes the U.S. has any vital interest in Taiwan.” |
| ◆ Council on Foreign Relations, 2025-2-21 | Trump is making Taiwan more vulnerable. Trump has also made clear that he wants to negotiate a broad economic deal with China, which raises the question of what China will seek in return. If Trump can take Greenland, why can't China take Taiwan? |
| ◆ The Guardian, 2025-2-21 | Taiwan holds its breath as a withdrawal of American support here would spark an existential crisis. “The Trump administration has already demonstrated that it is willing to suddenly and without warning break from decades of bipartisan US policy on China,” says head at ASPI. Worries about Trump's “lukewarm” view of Taiwan are becoming more obvious ...says professor at Taiwan's National ChengChi university. |
| ◆ Bloomberg, 2025-2-14 | Taiwan President pledged to boost military spending to 3% of GDP; Trump suggested the archipelago should devote 10% of GDP to its armed forces. The extra funds for defense would be secured through a special budget, Lai said. Such a move would require the cooperation of opposition lawmakers because they control the legislature. |
| ◆ NY Times, 2025-2-13 | some hard-line hawks on Taiwan have been left out, “It looks like Taiwan bet on some of the wrong horses.” ; Elbridge Colby warned that Taiwan should not assume that it was indispensable to the United States. |
| ◆ Fox News, 2025-2-7 | Trump's comments on the campaign trail suggest that he would not be willing to put boots on the ground to face another global superpower in defense of the island democracy. |
| ◆ Newsweek, 2025-1-3 | Trump, who positioned himself as being tough on China, has suggested he would not defend Taiwan from China |
| ◆ Politico (EU), 2025-1-30 | President Donald Trump's threat to use military force to take control of Greenland and Panama has spooked Taiwan. This could embolden Beijing to apply that same logic to pursuing its claims to Taiwan. |
| ◆ The Atlantics, 2024-10-25 | The shortcomings of Taiwan's military lend some validity to Trump's complaint that America's allies don't pay enough for their own defense and dump too much of the responsibility onto the United States—a burden that a second Trump administration might not be committed to bear. |
| ◆ New York Times, 2024-10-26 | Mr. Trump criticized Taiwan, saying that “they stole our chip business”,“They want us to protect, ... They don't pay us money for the protection... The mob makes you pay money, right?”America's heavy reliance on Taiwan's semiconductors has been a growing source of concern among U.S. officials, given China's ongoing threats to invade the self-governing island. |
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pic. : No.1 "review Taiwan" on US Yahoo, 2025-2-22, 2025-2-18, 2025-2-12, 2025-1-25, 2025-1-1, 2024-12-31, 2022-2-22, 2021-11-12
pic. : No.1 "review Taiwan" on Bing, 2025-2-22, 2025-2-18, 2025-2-12, 2024-10-10, 2024-9-30, 2024-9-15, 2024-8-20, 2024-8-8, 2024-8-2, 2024-7-23, 2024-7-11, 2024-7-1, 2024-6-3, 2024-5-1, 2024-4-19, 2024-3-15, 2024-3-3, 2024-2-28, 2024-2-12, 2024-1-14, 2024-1-1, 2023-12-12, 2023-11-29, 2023-11-11, 2023-11-1, 2023-10-6, 2023-9-18, 2023-9-6, 2023-9-1, 2023-8-21, 2023-8-8, 2023-8-1, 2023-7-14, 2023-7-4, 2023-6-17, 2023-6-3, 2023-5-23, 2023-5-1, 2023-4-30, 2023-4-15, 2023-3-31, 2023-3-20, 2023-2-28, 2023-1-21, 2023-1-1, 2022-12-24, 2022-12-17, 2022-11-29, 2022-11-1, 2022-10-23, 2022-10-10, 2022-9-23, 2022-9-16, 2022-9-5,2022-8-24, 2022-8-1, 2022-7-29, 2022-7-21, 2022-7-4, 2022-7-1, 2022-6-14, 2022-5-26, 2022-4-30, 2022-4-9, 2022-3-21, 2022-3-12, 2022-2-22, 2022-2-10, 2022-1-22, 2022-1-11, 2022-1-3, 2021-12-27, 2021-12-10, 2021-12-4, 2021-10-25, 2021-10-20, 2021-10-14, 2021-10-8, 2021-10-3, 2021-9-19, 2021-8-22, 2021-8-5, 2021-7-24, 2021-5-26, 2021-5-9, 2021-4-18, 3-26-2021, 3-20-2021, 3-8-2021, 2-21-2021, 1-1-2021, 12-6-2020, 11-29-2020, 11-1-2020, 10-11-2020, 8-2-2020 6-21-2020, 5-19-2020, 5-13-2020, 4-23-2020, 2-2-2020, 1-17-2020, 12-31-2019, 12-12-2019
pic. : No.1 "review Taiwan" on Yandex, 2025-2-22, 2025-2-18, 2025-2-12, 2025-2-4, 2025-1-6, 2025-1-1, 2024-12-31, 2024-12-28, 2023-9-13, 2023-9-6, 2023-9-1; No.2 "review Taiwan" on Yandex, 2024-12-27, 2024-12-22, 2024-12-20; " No.2 "Review Taiwan" on Yandex , 2024-8-8, 2023-12-12; No.3 "review Taiwan", at 2024-12-25, 2024-12-15, 2024-2-1, 2023-11-1; " review Taiwan" among top ranks on Yandex, 2024-12-15
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| ◆ Wall Street Journal, 2025-2-22 |
Taiwan must "adopt a new military culture"
akin to that of Israel, turning itself into a warrior-state. the DPP has flirted with sovereignty and self-determination, it has always been careful to stop short of provoking China with any outright declaration of independence —— that has kept Taiwan and China from falling into war. |
| ◆ Brookings, 2025-2-12 | China's strategy of “coercion without violence” includes cyber intrusions, economic coercion, influence operations, bribery, organized crime, united front activities, and ceaseless and intensifying military pressure surrounding Taiwan. In other words, Beijing is taking a full spectrum of actions... |
| ◆ Economist, 2025-2-6 | China is infiltrating Taiwan's armed forces. Most of the prosecuted cases have been uncovered through internal reporting, showing that anti-spy education is working. |
| ◆ New York Post, 2025-1-23 | Trump says he can strike deals that would keep China out of Taiwan. “We have a pot of gold.”,“We have one very big power over China and that's tariffs”. |
| ◆ Washington Post, 2025-1-17 | Taiwan is entering a period of political upheaval that could hinder its combat readiness; The two parties (KMT, TPP) that hold the majority in parliament are calling for substantial cuts, including to defense spending; Debates over defense — “whether to increase the military budget or pay a ‘protection fee’ to Trump” — are being “turned into battlegrounds for partisan conflict”. Trump has declined to give Biden's promise, instead calling for Taipei to pay for U.S. protection. |
| ◆ Council on Foreign Relations, 2025-1-15 | A top concern among U.S. security analysts is that China's growing military capabilities and assertiveness, as well as the deterioration in cross-strait relations, could spark a conflict that leads to a U.S.-China confrontation. |
| ◆ Financial Times, 2025-1-13 | Taiwan's long stretches of the coast comprise cliffs, reefs and rocks, while the flatter western seaboard is lined with mudflats. China building new mobile piers could help possible Taiwan invasion; But military experts said a Chinese invasion force would still struggle to advance through Taiwan's western plains, which are densely packed with paddy fields, fish ponds and urban sprawl, with wide roads often hard to reach from shore. |
| ◆ Bloomberg, 2025-1-14 |
Taiwan's military is not prepared for a Trumpian World; With the former president soon back in the White House, Taipei needs to rethink its defense strategy. |
| ◆ The Hill, 2025-1-7 | a professor at Brown University said the cost of a war with China is “incalculable” and would at the very least sow mass destruction in Taiwan and the South China Sea region; the U.S. should avoid a war over Taiwan, arguing it amounts to a civil war dispute and, for the U.S., a moral conundrum more than a national security risk. |
| ◆ Financial Times, 2025-1-5 |
Taiwan suspects a
Chinese-owned ship of cutting a subsea cable off its northern coast. Taipei is concerned that such “greyzone” operations, below the threshold of war, will make it harder to defend against aggression that could eventually escalate to an outright attack. ps: Politico Europe (2025-1-5): Taiwan has experienced several dozen incidents of damage to its underwater telecom cables in recent years, without being able to definitively identify the source of the attacks, and has appealed to the European Union for help. |
| ◆ Wall Street Journal, 2025-1-3 | In addition to unleashing its full military power, Beijing would be expected to use a variety of economic strategies in a showdown over Taiwan. A 2023 study by Rhodium Group and the Atlantic Council concluded that Beijing has been more systematic in preparing such defenses than Russia was to counter Western sanctions. |
| ◆ Washington Post, 2025-1-1 | Xi's New Year speech: "No one can sever our blood ties, and no one can stop the historical trend of the reunification of the motherland!" |
| ◆ Washington Examiner, 2025-1-1 | The quantity and quality of munitions to deter a Chinese invasion of Taiwan has fallen as they have been diverted to Ukraine. The sooner the war in Ukraine ends, the sooner American forces can rearm in the Pacific. While Taiwan's 2.5% of GDP spent on defense is impressive compared to many European nations, it is nowhere near what is needed in a nation at the front line of conflict. |
| ◆ New York Times, 2024-12-31 | Without a plan, a Taiwan crisis risks undermining the foundations of American prosperity and security. As a report from a House panel concluded last year: "The United States lacks a contingency plan for the economic and financial impacts of conflict" with China. Imposing sweeping sanctions on China would undermine the international economic system that the United States is uniquely positioned to protect. |
| ◆ USNI News, 2024-12-19 | The Pentagon's report recognizes that China has “both the will and capability to alter the international order in its favor”; but Xi Jinping's goal of having his military ready to carry out a “short, sharp invasion” of Taiwan by 2027 “is not possible right now”; the force has not yet demonstrated the type and scale of sophisticated urban warfare or long-distance logistic capabilities that would likely be required for operations against Taiwan or major contingencies overseas”. |
| ◆ Financial Times, 2024-12-13 | US nuclear build-up would not help deter China from using atomic weapons in Taiwan, war game finds; Unclassified exercise by CSIS and MIT suggests Washington should not go beyond current modernisation plans... only five of 15 iterations of the nuclear game ended with a withdrawal of the PLA. |
| ◆ Economist, 2024-12-5 |
American military officials have
long worried about a “window of vulnerability” before new weapons enter
into service in the 2030s. But
corruption in the PLA is changing the calculations of analysts;
China's economic woes and social
discontent mean that Mr Xi is turning inward. The views (the period of greatest danger has probably been pushed out for several years) are not universally shared, in or out of government. “Xi has his foot firmly on the accelerator and a full tank of gas". |
| ◆ VOX, 2024-12-16 | a majority of Taiwanese and US national security experts do not believe China currently has the capability to carry out an amphibious invasion of Taiwan, most do believe China could currently enact either a blockade or a quarantine of the island. And such an operation may prove just as effective while carrying far less risk for Beijing. |
| ◆ Breaking Defense, 2024-12-6 |
The head of the Defense
Intelligence Agency: China did
appear to be on track to meet Xi's 2027 preparedness goal. House intel's Himes: You could implement a blockade. You know, what? If you invade Taiwan, what happens? A. You may lose. B. You may reduce the place to smoking rubble, what have you really achieved economically? |
| ◆ Newsweek, 2024-11-20 | U.S. Pacific Commander Samuel Paparo: a cross-strait invasion executed by the Chinese military would be "exceedingly difficult" given the advantages of the U.S. and allies. |
| ◆ Washington Examiner, 2024-12-4 |
Chinese leaders have said
they want their military to be prepared to invade Taiwan by 2027, though
U.S. defense leaders have said the date does not guarantee a decision to
carry out such an operation has been made.
War with China would exhaust munition stockpiles "very rapidly", national security adviser J. Sullivan acknowledged that China has "the single biggest advantage", "God forbid we end up in a full-scale war with the PRC" . |
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Trump says new tariffs on computer chips, semiconductors are coming soon |
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| ◆ NY Times, 2025-2-13 | Taiwan is adjusting to a shift in its relationship with the United States, its primary backer — one that does not focus on shared democratic ideals, and that is more uncertain and transactional. Taiwanese officials have traveled to Washington to float energy deals and defend the island's semiconductors. |
| ◆ Reuters, 2025-2-15 | Taiwan pledges chip talks and investment to mollify Trump |
| ◆ Bloomberg, 2025-2-15 | Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. is considering taking a controlling stake in Intel Corp.'s factories at the request of Trump administration officials, as the president looks to boost American manufacturing and maintain US leadership in critical technologies. |
| ◆ Reuters, 2025-2-14; PC Magazine, 2025-2-13 | Trump: Intel was great until 'Taiwan took our chip business away'' ; Trump says he wants it (chip business ) back, "If they don't bring it back, we're not going to be very happy” |
| ◆ Fortune, 2025-2-3 | Taiwan offers to help firms move production to the U.S., Southeast Asia, or India as Trump threatens tariffs. a U.S. think tank argues that a tariff on Taiwanese chips would likely backfire. The organization claims that such a measure will increase prices, hurt U.S. tech firms, and damage relations with Taiwan, while also failing to drive chip and electronics manufacturing back to the U.S |
| ◆ Washington Post, 2025-1-28 | the vast majority of chip production happens overseas, particularly in Taiwan ── Trump said he wanted the manufacturers of semiconductors and chips — which are used in many high-end consumer electronics and sophisticated AI-powered technology and research — to open factories in the United States and would use the threat of high taxes and tariffs to force them to relocate. |
| ◆ Politico (EU), 2025-1-30 | Trump threatened to impose tariffs of up to 100 percent on Taiwanese semiconductor imports in a bid to “return production of these essential goods to the United States of America.” Taipei will convene “emergency discussions” to determine countermeasures... |
| ◆ Reuters, 2025-1-28 |
Taiwan Economy Minister said he
only expected a small impact from any tariffs imposed by Trump on semiconductor
exports given their technological superiority. In another potential challenge for Taiwan, Trump last week directed federal agencies to investigate persistent U.S. trade deficits and unfair trade practices and alleged currency manipulation by other countries |
| ◆ Business Insider, 2025-1-28 | US tariffs on Taiwan's semiconductors could result in a steep increase in costs to Nvidia and other significant customers, such as Apple and AMD. Chip manufacturing efforts in the US are less developed and more expensive than those in Taiwan. the US's chip manufacturing sector could take years to develop the same capacity as Taiwan's. |
| ◆ CNN, 2024-12-15 | Trump's remarks have prompted jitters that Taiwan would need to move more of its critical chip supply chain to the US at a faster pace, that could affect the island's economic security and dismantle the very “silicon shield” ... |
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How much of the world backs Beijing's claim to Taiwan? |
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| ♣ Economist, 2025-2-9 | By The Economist's count, 70 countries have now officially endorsed that China is entitled to pursue “all” efforts to achieve unification, without specifying that those efforts should be peaceful. China's latest diplomatic push appears to be designed to secure global support for its broadening campaign of coercion against Taiwan. That campaign includes the threat of imposing a quarantine or inspection regime on Taiwan economist.com/international/2025/02/09/chinas-stunning-new-campaign-to-turn-the-world-against-taiwan |
| ♣ Lowy Institute , 2025-1-29 | nearly three-quarters of countries (74% or 142 in total) now support Beijing's position that Taiwan is part of China.。A growing number of countries support PRC efforts to “achieve national reunification” without any caveat that Beijing's objectives should be pursued peacefully. The widespread adoption of Beijing's stance might constrain US-led deterrence efforts and could provide the PRC with extra licence to escalate military aggression lowyinstitute.org/the-interpreter/how-much-world-really-backs-beijing-s-claim-taiwan |
| ♣ National Review . 2024-10-7 | Taiwan is losing the battle for diplomatic recognition overseas. The island nation cannot compete with China's “checkbook diplomacy,” preferring instead to await the day when the foreign beneficiaries of Beijing’s largess recognize the substandard services they're purchasing and see for themselves the point of diminishing returns. Washington treated Taiwan as a chip to be traded away. |
| ♣ National Public Radio, 2024-8-19 | Taiwan is not officially considered a sovereign nation by most other countries and does not have the ability to conduct normal diplomacy. |
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The scale of this recall effort is unprecedented in Taiwan's democratic history |
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| ◆ Foreign Policy, 2025-2-3 | The ruling party's engaging in violence in the legislature to prevent bills from being passed, launching what many see as a political witch hunt against the leader of the third party, and attempting politically motivated recalls to target dozens of opposition lawmakers is a terrible look for any self-respecting democracy. These dysfunctional domestic politics are not just embarrassing, but damaging for Taiwan's stability ── in Taiwan, recalls have been wielded in a retaliatory and petty manner as political weapons rather than as legitimate means of kicking bad politicians out of office. The opposition warned that if the DPP could use the judicial system against Ko, it could go after any other politician. |
| ◆ The Diplomat, 2025-1-28 | The KMT-TPP alliance's deep cuts to government budget spark widespread recall efforts against KMT legislators in Taiwan. The scale of this recall effort is unprecedented in Taiwan's democratic history. Most importantly, the budget cuts raise international doubts about Taiwan's determination to defend itself. TPP claimed that the reduction is only 6.6 percent of the proposed budget and that the remaining budget is “more than sufficient” for the government's operations. The majority may not support the recalls. |
| ◆ Washington Times, 2024-12-27 | "Elbridge Colby and Pete Hegseth: Charting a new course for U.S.-Taiwan security": With the possibility of recall elections targeting these KMT politicians, Taiwan has an opportunity to confront these internal threats and demonstrate its commitment to national security. |
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