Focus Taiwan
Date: 2018/07/20
By: Rita Cheng and Elizabeth Hsu

Washington, July 19 (CNA) An American expert on East Asian security affairs believes the military balance in the Taiwan Strait is tilting toward Beijing, but that China currently remains unable to take Taiwan by force in the face of U.S. intervention.

Roger Cliff, a senior researcher at American nonprofit research and analysis organization, CNA, elaborated on cross-strait and U.S. military power on Thursday at a seminar on cross-strait relations organized by the Washington D.C.-based think tank Global Taiwan Institute.

Having researched Chinese military modernization, China’s foreign policy and U.S. strategy toward Asia, Cliff said “the military balance in the Taiwan Strait is heavily tilting toward China.”

“The good news is, providing the U.S. comes to Taiwan to defend it, China does not currently have the capability to take Taiwan by force or will any time soon,” Cliff said.    [FULL  STORY]