Banyan – Have departing American officials made Taiwan into a booby trap? | Asia | The Economist
Article summary
New rules on mutual ties could make trouble for both America and Taiwan T ECHNICALLY SPEAKING, the United States has not had diplomatic relations with Taiwan since it initiated them with the People’s Republic of China, in 1979. But diplomats or no, America promises to maintain close economic and cultural ties and provide arms “of a defensive character”. […] Yet his administration housed appointees whose fervent support of democratic Taiwan is the flipside of their Manichaean view of the evils of China. […] Worse, Evan Medeiros, a former head of policy on China and Taiwan for Barack Obama who is now at Georgetown University, sees Mr Pompeo’s move as a trap for Taiwan, too. […] Not least, says her ally Wang Ting-yu, co-chairman of parliament’s foreign-affairs and national-defence committee, Taiwan should give Mr Biden room to complete the transition, which is also a sensitive time for President Xi Jinping of China.
