By Jonathan Power
Is what you see what you’ll get? President Xi Jinping of China is poking the US in the eye again. China, he suggests, is all set to wrest Taiwan back into the “China fold”. Xi appears far more determined than his predecessors to try to do this. Yet even he is cautious. He doesn’t threaten immediate military action and he sets no timetable for himself.
So, given the breathing space, the West has the formidable job of persuading him this is not a good idea. Above all more arms- or promises of arms-are not needed, especially so when Taiwan is gearing up for the ballot box in the election on January 13. A vast majority of Taiwanese want the ballot not the bullet as a means of keeping the mainland at bay.
Beijing has over a thousand rockets aimed at Taiwan. The US supplies arms aplenty to Taiwan—some of which, provocatively, need American cooperation and participation to be fired. Despite that China is arguably capable of overwhelming the island’s defences.
In reality, both sides need each other. Taiwan wouldn’t be so comfortably off if it didn’t have the Chinese market for its huge investments, a home for factories churning out the latest products........