cross-strait relations

Code Pink Webinar With Carl Zha on Taiwanese Skips Most of the Last Century, Has No Taiwanese Speakers

Brian Hioe
Anti-war organizations Code Pink and Massachusetts Peace Action held a webinar on the possibility of war in the Taiwan Straits late last month, featuring Chinese podcaster Carl Zha and Madison Tang from Code Pink. The event proved a striking example of the sort of discussion of Taiwan one gets from elements of the anti-war left when they speak over Taiwanese voices, with neither Zha nor Tang being Taiwanese. Zha was the main speaker, with Tang moderating...
December 2021EnglishPolitics10 min read

In Unusual Move, Murder Suspect that Fled to China to be Extradited to Taiwan

Brian Hioe
A criminal suspect surnamed Huang who fled to China from Taiwan earlier this month will be extradited in an agreement between Taiwan and China. The deportation proves an unusual incident at a time in which cross-strait relations between Taiwan and China are poor, probably signaling that the Chinese government did not think it could gain anything politically from the incident...
December 2021EnglishPolitics7 min read

Taipei-Shanghai Forum Indicates Attempts by China to Politically Pressure Taiwanese Companies

Brian Hioe
The annual Taipei-Shanghai Forum took place online for the second year in a row, given the current COVID-19 pandemic. Compared to past years, there was probably less fanfare than before. This is not only because of the online format, but because of the way that the forum is tied to Taipei mayor Ko Wen-je’s political career, as a Ko initiative. That being said, there was some controversy about the cost of the 1,390,000 NT expense of the forum, when it was expected that the forum would be cheaper this year due to the online format...
Cross StraitDecember 2021EnglishInternational6 min read

Visit Last Week by Mostly Democratic Party Delegation Takes Place in Low-Key Manner

Brian Hioe
A US diplomatic visit took place on Thursday and Friday last week, involving a delegation of five members of the House of Representatives. The five members of the delegation were Mark Takano (D-CA), Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), Colin Allred (D-TX), Sara Jacobs (D-CA), and Nancy Mace (R-SC), who met with Taiwanese president Tsai Ing-wen and other high-ranking government officials....
America and the Asia PacificDecember 2021EnglishInternational6 min read

Xi and Biden Meet in Virtual Summit Over Taiwan, Other Issues

Brian Hioe
US president Joe Biden met with Chinese president Xi Jinping today in a virtual meeting. This was one of the most high-profile meetings between the leaders of the world’s two superpowers since Biden took office, with Xi having not left China in around two years. As a result, Xi was not in attendance at the COP26 summit on global carbon emissions, something that was criticized by Biden. The meeting took place on what was Tuesday morning in China and Monday evening in the US...
EnglishInternationalNovember 2021Regional Tensions7 min read

Scandal Over National Tsing Hua University Office Illustrates United Front Efforts on Taiwanese Campuses

Brian Hioe
Reports earlier this week indicated that efforts to recruit Taiwanese IT staff were being conducted at National Tsing Hua University by the Chinese government. This took place through a branch office that had been rented on the university campus by an alumni association, in cooperation with China’s Tsinghua University located in Beijing, and the government of Xiamen. The university has denied having any relations with the office, with the Tsai administration stating that the university may have violated the law...
Cross StraitEnglishInternationalNovember 20215 min read