After forty years of the Taiwan Relations Act, as both parties are presented with an increasingly aggressive China, Milo Hsieh argues it's time for a new chapter in relations between the U.S. and Taiwan.

The News Lens
Date: 2019/06/25
By: Milo Hsieh

In 2019 the Taiwan Relations Act (TRA), which governs U.S. commitment to Taiwan, hits its forty-year anniversary. Established in 1979 in the aftermath of U.S. recognition of the People's Republic of China (PRC), the TRA re-established U.S. relations with the people of Taiwan after ceasing to recognize the government of the Republic of China, which had ruled Taiwan since 1949 and claimed to be the sole legitimate government representing China.

Many in the U.S. were excited by the opportunity brought on by connecting with China after President Richard Nixon made a surprise visit in 1972 — also the year that the PRC replaced Generalissimo Chiang's (蔣介石) representatives in the U.N. as a permanent member of the security council. Under Deng Xiaoping (鄧小平), China's economy was reformed and opened up to the outside for investment. For decades after the reform, China's economy grew significantly. After China joined the World Trade Organization in 2001, its export boosted significantly, allowing it to slowly rise to the position of a formidable power in East Asia.

However, as we reach toward the end of the 21st century's second decade, China's rise — along with its increasingly authoritarian governing structure under Xi Jinping (習近平) — now presents a greater threat to U.S. interest in the Indo-Pacific region. While many were optimistic about China potentially democratizing, the violent suppression of the Tiananmen Square Incident in 1989 dashed hopes for democratization despite countries such as South Korea and Taiwan democratizing. Furthermore, the recent abolition of term limit for China's president under Xi Jinping, commonly seen as the appointment of himself as a dictator for life, is seen as a backslide in China's democratic development.    [FULL  STORY]