Abstract
The purpose of this article is to analyze the United States’ (US) Taiwan policy during the George W. Bush administration (2001-2009)—specifically, how Washington actively opposed Taiwanese independence during this period. After the Korean War (1950), the US’s official policy on Taiwan was to “neutralize” and prevent war across the Taiwan Strait, thereby maintaining the status quo in the region. During the 1950´s and 1960´s, the US successfully prevented Chinese attempts to invade Taiwan. However, the dynamic of the cross-strait relations changed drastically in the 1990´s, following Taiwan’s political liberalization and the emergence of the Taiwanese independence movement. During the George W. Bush administration (2001-2009), Taiwan was ruled by the pro-independence Chen Shui-bian (2000-2008), which increased cross-strait tensions. In order to satisfy its own geopolitical interests, the US actively denied support to this movement, boycotting Chen´s attempts to declare Taiwan´s independence. This paper concludes that the core of the US’s Taiwan policy is to prevent alteration of the status quo or threat of war in the region, while using the “Taiwan Card” as a bargaining chip in bilateral negotiations with China.
Highlights
Between the 1950 ́s and 1980 ́s, the source of crossstrait tensions between Taiwan and Mainland China was ideological in nature, withthe Chinese Communist Party (CCP)—which won the Chinese Civil War and founded the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) in Mainland China in 1949— on one side
President Bush hadreaffirmedthe United States’ (US)’s promiseto defend Taiwan, he made a reservation: We're for a One China policy based upon what they call the Three Communiqués, and that we adhere to the Taiwan Relations Act, which means this: Neither side will unilaterally change the status quo
The US changed its policy towards the PRC in the 1970’s, sacrificing Taipei’s interests
Summary
Between the 1950 ́s and 1980 ́s, the source of crossstrait tensions between Taiwan and Mainland China was ideological in nature, withthe Chinese Communist Party (CCP)—which won the Chinese Civil War and founded the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) in Mainland China in 1949— on one side. Since the reallocation of the central government of the ROC from mainland China to Taiwan in 1949, and the outbreak of the Korean War in 1950, the US government hasofficially adopteda policy of “neutralizing “the Taiwan Strait, with the ultimate objective of preventing communist expansion in Asia During this period, due to Taiwan’s geostrategic importance to Washington, the US actively maintained the status quo in the Taiwan Strait, preventing attempts by the PRC to invade Taiwan and attempts by Chiang Kai-shek in Taiwan to “recover” the mainland. The election of Chen Shui-bian from the DPP, who publicly supported Taiwanese independence, further increased tensions between the ROC and PRC, forcing Washington to intervene in Taiwan in order to prevent a conflict in the Taiwan Strait. 2003, during the visit of the PRC Premier Wen Jiabao to the US, Bush stated: The United States Government’s policy is one China, based upon the three communiques and the Taiwan Relations Act. We oppose any unilateral decision by either China or Taiwan to change the status quo. The comments and actions made by the leader of Taiwan indicate that he may be willing to make decisions unilaterally to change the status quo, which we oppose(KAN, 2011a, p. 71)
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