Former National Security Advisor John Bolton’s recent book, which was published in late June, has made waves internationally because of the revelations it purports about the Trump administration. It may not be surprising that the book has also provoked strong reactions in Taiwan...
Several recent incidents indicate how support for Taiwan from other countries sometimes occurs primarily as the result of antagonisms with China rather than genuine solidarity with Taiwan. In particular, tensions between many nations and China have been accentuated by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the US-China trade war...
Reactions from China have, unsurprisingly, been unhappy regarding a recent meeting between American National Security Advisor John Bolton and Taiwanese National Security Council Secretary-General David Lee. However, perhaps too many in Taiwan have proved unwilling to look a gift horse in the mouth regarding the meeting...
The opening of the new American Institute in Taiwan complex in Neihu was largely a non-event today. Apart from being overshadowed by the Trump-Kim summit that took place concurrently in Singapore, the building move signals little about any shift in American policy on Taiwan, regardless of boilerplate talk by American and Taiwanese policymakers...
News that North Korea has cancelled planned talks with South Korea should be nothing surprising for those skeptical that peace had been achieved on the Korean Peninsula following a meeting between South Korean president Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. North Korea now also threatens to call off talks with the US, specifically raising issue with comments by American National Security Advisor John Bolton...
A great deal of uncertainty would seem to be ahead for the planned meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and American president Donald Trump, which is scheduled to take place on June 12th in Singapore. This is particularly seeing as Trump has decided abruptly to withdraw from a nuclear deal with Iran that lifted long-standing economic sanctions on Iran in 2015 in return for Iran dismantling aspects of its nuclear weapons program...
The decision by American president Donald Trump to conduct an missile strikes in Syria, an act many have condemned globally, should have lessons for Taiwan...
Reports that Donald Trump intends to reverse course on the TPP are vaguely humorous. Namely, withdrawing from the agreement was not only a key campaign promise of Trump’s but literally one of Trump’s first actions in office. But there will no doubt be those that claim that the Trump administration's reversal is the Trump administration engaging in high-risk negotiation tactics rather than simple incoherency...
The return to power of John Bolton and Peter Navarro in the Trump administration, after a period in which both were relegated to lesser roles in favor of other political actors, have been celebrated by some in Taiwan. But such appointments are signs of the incoherence and irrational hawkishness of the Trump Administration much more than they are indications of any more supportive policy of Taiwan...
Concerns in Taiwan that it will be severely affected by steel and aluminum tariffs by the Trump administration are ironic, illustrating in a nutshell what the perils of placing one’s faith in the Trump administration are. Perhaps Taiwan could learn something from this...