While Chinese commentary was resoundingly positive aboutSaturday’s meeting between President Xi Jinping of China and President Ma Ying-jeou of Taiwan, reactions in Taiwan to the historic encounter were decidedly mixed.
On his trip home, Mr. Ma told reporters accompanying him on the plane that he felt most of his goals for the encounter had been accomplished, with the biggest being the meeting itself, bringing together the leaders of the two sides for the first time since the end of China’s civil war in 1949. But he added that he was not satisfied with Mr. Xi’s assertion on Saturday that the Chinese missiles arrayed along the Taiwan Strait were not targeting the island.
The United States said that it welcomed the meeting of Mr. Ma and Mr. Xi. “The United States has a deep and abiding interest in peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, and we encourage further progress by both sides toward building ties, reducing tensions, and promoting stability on the basis of dignity and respect,” John Kirby, a State Department spokesman, said in a written statement.
China considers Taiwan to be part of its territory that must eventually be unified and has threatened the use of force if Taiwan pursues formal independence.
4 comments:
I think for regional stability and progress it is imperative that the resolution of Taiwan be the top priority. In terms of the US, it would also want a much more easier corridor without political hindrance in terms of tensions between China and Taiwan. It will be interesting to see as more meetings between the President of Taiwan would result in more fruitful conclusions besides just dialogue. However; it is a very good first step towards a permanent solution.
While I agree with Muhammad, I can definitely see why the Taiwanese would be apprehensive about this meeting. Whenever there are purported peace talks, people on both sides get nervous, because the results are never certain. Another interesting thing to note is that the Taiwanese president will not be in power next year, so this could be a half-hearted attempt at a reconciliation, almost like a lame-duck conversation. Only time will tell if anything fruitful comes out of these discussions.
I think that Emily makes a great point. The Taiwanese president, Ma Ying-jeou, will not be in power next year, so this truly could be a half-hearted attempt at reconciliation between Taiwan and China. I think with this meeting, it is also understandable as to why tensions remain high in Taiwan due to the still apparent threat from the Chinese government of reunification.
Most importantly, I think the piece of the article that I found the most interesting was the response from the spokesman of the United States State Department John Kirby. Due to this on-going threat from China to end peace in Taiwan and force them to re-enter the communist state, the United States has taken notice. I think there are many questions that this "aid" of the United States government in Taiwanese and Chinese talks raises. For example, "how far is the United States will to go to help the Taiwanese government keep Chinese forces from entering Taiwan?" and "will the aid of the United States cause unforeseen tension between the United States and China - ultimately leading to distress in the global and domestic economic market?".
I believe that sustainable economic growth is what's most important to Taiwan right now. Friction between China and Taiwan has always been prominent in hindering the advancement in economical and political relations between Taiwan and the U.S. I believe these meetings will further progress on both sides in building relation.
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