October 26,1999

MEMORANDUM TO: OPINION LEADERS

FROM: GARY SCHMITT

SUBJECT: Taiwan and China

The House International Relations Committee is expected to vote today on The Taiwan Security Enhancement Act, a bill that would enhance U.S. defense support and links to Taiwan. Critics of the measure have argued that it would dangerously overstate U.S. ties to Taiwan. This is simply not the case. The act is consistent with the letter and spirit of the Taiwan Relations Act of 1979, which makes it U.S. policy to provide Taiwan with the arms "necessary" to defend itself and asserts that Taiwan's future should not be settled by any "other than peaceful means." Given China's increased willingness to threaten Taiwan militarily and the Clinton Administration's significant tilt toward Beijing in recent years, the measure is an appropriate step for Congress to take. Congress has traditionally acted as a corrective to executive branch policies that focus too much on relations with Beijing at the expense of Taiwan, a long-time and now democratic ally.

In this connection, I would like to draw your attention to a recent article written by Los Angeles Times reporter Jim Mann ("U.S. Drawn Into Battle Over China-Taiwan Relationship," Oct. 10, 1999, p.A1). Contrary to its title, Mann's report makes it clear that much of the blame for the current crisis in cross-strait relations can be traced to the administration's efforts to pressure Taipei into cutting a deal with the PRC along the lines of Hong Kong's return to China. As Taiwan's Foreign Minister Jason Hu tells Mann, the "increasing tendency [of the administration] to accept the People's Republic of China's version of ‘one China'" leaves little "breathing room for us." Thus, Lee's declaration that Taiwan and China should deal with each other as separate, sovereign states appears to be a preemptive strategic move on his part, and not (as the administration has suggested) a rash act of political expediency designed simply to court votes for his party in Taiwan’s upcoming presidential election.

Opponents of the Taiwan Security Enhancement Act have tried to put off its passage for now by arguing it might throw a wrench into the negotiations between China and the United States over entry into the World Trade Organization. Whether this is true is anybody's guess. But, if it is true, it would be a telling reminder about the priority China's current leaders give to their regional aspirations over and above needed economic reforms, and provides even more evidence of why passage of the act is a sound idea.