RUSI
Date: 9 June 2020
By: Veerle Nouwens

Commentary,

Taiwan’s leader has proven to be a deft political player and a great political survivor. But she will need all her skills to navigate the island through the stormy seas which lie ahead.

Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen has started her second term in office on a high note. She won re-election with over 56% of the popular vote, a landslide in Taiwanese terms. Her government also did very well in containing this year’s other major challenge, the coronavirus pandemic. Her government’s successful handling of the pandemic – despite being excluded from the World Health Organization – has rightfully garnered praise, and world leaders like EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen thanked Taiwan for its donations of 5.6 million masks.

However, other serious challenges lie ahead. The US–China relationship has deteriorated to levels unseen in decades. The US is examining ways to exert pressure on China, such as through the Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act of 2020, and the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act of 2019. Conversely, support for Taiwan in the White House and Congress alike are growing, with bills like the TAIPEI Act and Taiwan Travel Act now in place.

In Taiwan, even the opposition Kuomintang Party is reportedly re-examining its position of a more China-friendly policy after its significant defeat in the January presidential elections. Taiwanese voters have closely followed Hong Kong’s diminishing autonomy under the ‘One Country, Two Systems’ arrangement, which Beijing has offered to Taiwan as the only viable future for cross-strait relations. It is a future that President Tsai firmly rejected in her inaugural address. Unsurprising, given that opinion poll results in February 2020 show that a record number of respondents (83.2%) identify as Taiwanese, rather than Chinese (5.3%) or both (6.7%).    [FULL  STORY]