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There is a lot of room to avoid destructive escalation over Taiwan
It is up to China’s leadership to find more attractive ways to pursue its goal of reunification, because clearly the current approach based on projection of military power is not having the desired effect on the people across the strait.
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Showing off: People walk in front of a large screen broadcasting news on China's military exercise, which came after the visit of United States Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan, in Beijing on Aug. 4, 2022. (AFP/Noel Celis)
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nation needs a commitment to do whatever it takes to maintain the status quo while keeping a strong form of government that is deeply intrinsic and interwoven to the society that legitimizes its political system.
That should be the case for China and its cross-strait neighbor Taiwan.
On one hand, China has to pledge to never accomplish its reunification with Taiwan by force, even if this implies a silent and unofficial break with the Anti-Secession Law that Beijing approved in 2005 under president Hu Juntao. It is a cardinal law that defines the standing of China toward its relationship with Taiwan.
On the other hand, Taiwan should stay the course in promoting its democracy and liberal and progressive order while trying to reduce the temperature in dealing with Beijing even if this means sacrificing some aspects of its international standing in the world. For example, Taipei could temporarily limit but not completely stop its “parliamentary” diplomacy with the West or at least conduct such engagements in a less provocative fashion.
As a high-ranking delegation from the German parliament arrived in Taiwan on Monday, once again China showed its irritation by deploying its military prowess over the strait. It seems that one action from one side triggers a response that itself brings more tensions and upset.
Back in 2000, literally in another era, president Chen Shui-bian, the first politician heading the territory of Taiwan from the Democratic Progressive Party, came up with the so called Four Noes and One Without that were practical ways to engage with China without compromising the core interests of Taiwan.
Among the four noes, there was a commitment from Taiwan not to declare independence nor to change its constitution in order to highlight the state-to-state relationships between the two entities.
