Taiwan

[Crafty_Dog]

Trump, and the rest of the West, utterly failed to speak out when China broke its word to Hong Kong (and by so doing, to the British as well).

[Crafty_Dog]

https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/20302/taiwan-voters

[DougMacG]

https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/20302/taiwan-voters

Excellent.  Someone should call out this "reunification" bullsh*t.  Taiwan, as I understand it, was never ruled by this totalitarian regime.  Elect democracies on both sides of the Straits first and then discuss a consensual merger.  It should take a super majority on both sides to change the status quo.

And remember Hong Kong.  War crime describes what happened better than 'two systems'.

[Crafty_Dog]

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/donald-trump-s-taiwan-remarks-spark-fury-and-concern/ar-BB1h2J1G?ocid=msedgntp&pc=HCTS&cvid=6eb438ca114741e49b8ee13ba9ccc1a0&ei=10

[ccp]

I agree with the articles quoted criticisms of Trump on this.

Inconsistent for sure.

" In an interview with NBC News from September, Trump took a similar stance on the issue, stating that he would not say what his position on the matter would be, but also stated that sending U.S. troops to Taiwan would not be "off the table."

There is nothing I dislike more then those who state an option (usually military) is 'not off the table'

If this does not show weakness I don't know what does.

[Crafty_Dog]

Not with you in this case.

IMHO sometimes, here for example, strategic ambiguity has its merit.

[Crafty_Dog]

https://amgreatness.com/2024/02/04/taiwan-as-the-frog-in-the-pot-beijing-turns-up-the-heat-one-more-degree/

[Crafty_Dog]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=stw2k_N3-N4

[Crafty_Dog]

(7) CHINA’S HARSH WORDS ON TAIWANESE INDEPENDENCE: At the annual National People’s Congress of China, President Xi Jinping and Foreign Affairs Minister Wang Yi played “the carrot and the stick” narrative tactic for Taiwan.

“Whoever promotes Taiwan's independence will be liquidated by history. Anyone in the international community who supports Taiwan independence and plays with fire will get burned and suffer the consequences," Wang Yi said.

Why It Matters: This message of choosing the peaceful route or the warlike route will resonate with Taiwan. Strengthening anti-independence forces likely means promoting Kuomintang and Taiwan People’s Party members to reaffirm the 1992 Consensus, preventing an independence declaration. There are very few pro-unification forces in Taiwan, but China’s shaping operations could promote them into power as it seeks to degrade the U.S.-led international order. - J.V.

[Crafty_Dog]

(5) XI: NO ONE CAN STOP TAIWAN REUNIFICATION: Chinese President Xi Jinping told former Taiwanese president Ma Ying-jeou that no outside force could stop the reunification of Taiwan with mainland China.

“External interference cannot stop the historical trend of reunion of the country and family,” Xi said, according to Taiwanese media.

Why It Matters: Xi is likely correct that no one will stop reunification with Taiwan. I remain doubtful that the United States will militarily intervene in the defense of Taiwan, which is likely to meet the same fate as Hong Kong. The U.S. strategy appears to be delaying Chinese action on Taiwan until semiconductor manufacturing can begin in the United States. Meanwhile, the U.S. aims to enable Taiwan to defend itself from and resist a potential military invasion. China almost certainly prefers reunification through means beneath the threshold of conventional war. – M.S.