Madrid. Lai Ching-teof the Progressive Democratic Party (PDP)has assumed this week the Presidency of Taiwan without renouncing the sovereignty of the island and offering dialogue to China without previous “conditions”, which Beijing will not accept, at a time of enormous polarization of international politics and in the midst of a new trade war between USA and the People’s Republic of China, the two first world powers, who know that the Republic of China (Taiwan) can change the geopolitics of the Peaceful.
China has begun intense military maneuvers around Taiwan to pressure the new Taiwanese president, who has assured that his new Government will protect the island, around which China is carrying out military maneuvers. Beijing puts pressure and since 2022 military exercises are part of the Chinese strategy against the island.
China has not and will not stop putting pressure on Taiwan with its military operations in the vicinity of the island. Despite Beijing’s insistence on a peaceful “reunification”, which is practically unviable at least for now, Taipei insists on its autonomy, considering that this is what the majority of its citizens demand.
Taiwan defends its current ‘status quo’ like any independent country, while China has been calling Lai a “separatist” and “serious danger”, whose electoral victory last January contributed to an increase in air and maritime operations by the Chinese Armed Forces. which have led to an increase in tensions with the island and with the United States.
In this way, relations with the People’s Republic of China worsened significantly with the rise to power of its predecessor, Tsai Ing-wen (2016-2024), and with an increase in geopolitical hostility between China and the United States, whose tension reached high voltage levels in the summer of 2022 when the visit of the then president of the House of Representatives took place, Nancy Pelosithe greatest American authority to set foot on the island in a quarter of a century, which upset China and led to several days of military exercises that simulated a hypothetical invasion and with it enormous global instability.
Lai, 64 years old, his Presidency will be key to continuing to strengthen ties with the United States, his great ally, and the main international supporter and maximum supplier of weapons of a country whose independence is recognized by some twelve nations, but a key country in many aspects, as the technological one, given that Taiwan, with regard to the semiconductors It is an important power, in addition to the good work for the growth of leading companies in the sector, such as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC). And precisely the Taiwanese GDP will increase its growth rate to 2.9% in 2024, compared to that of 2023, which advanced around 1.2% due, in particular, to lower exports of semiconductors as Taiwanese companies have focused its investments abroad.
The tension on the island is not going to go down. Lai’s new government and the two main opposition parties, which control the Taiwanese Legislature, expressed this week their condemnation of the “provocative” maneuvers of the Chinese Army around the island. Some maneuvers, the largest so far this year, take place three days after the inauguration of the new president of Taiwan, Lai Ching-te, branded by Beijing as a “secessionist” and “troublemaker.”
In fact, the opponent of the Kuomintang, closest to China, supports all the actions of the Taiwanese Executive to safeguard the interests of the island and the same goes for Huang Kuo-changcoordinator of the parliamentary group of the also opposition People’s Party (PPP), but both advocate that these maneuvers by Beijing do not lead to “stability and peace”, while Beijing describes them as “legitimate and necessary”, which has meant that Taiwan deploys its sea, air and land forces to respond to China’s military exercises.
Taiwan currently maintains diplomatic ties with twelve countriesseven of them located in Latin America and the CaribbeanThree in Oceaniaone in Africa and another in Europe (Vatican City), and its economic ties, despite pressure from Beijing with other nations, do not go unnoticed by China. At Lai’s inauguration there were countries without diplomatic relations, such as the US, Canada and Singaporewho sent “congratulatory groups”, in addition to Japan, South Korea and Australia. There were also legislators from European Parliament and the presence of Paraguaywhich maintains diplomatic relations with Taiwan and whose president, Santiago Penawas at the investiture, although Beijing has been trying for some time to break them to establish them with the People’s Republic of China, which complained about the presence of some of these representatives.
Strategically, Taipei remains vital for the US, especially with China’s increasing influence in Asiasince the Pacific is now the core of the rivalry between Beijing and Washington and the Taiwan Strait lies the division into two seas: South China Sea and East China Sea. The Asian giant will not give up on its objective of recovering the island, while the US, if it wants to continue influencing the area and thereby avoid Chinese hegemony, will not stand idly by in the face of any threat to the island.
Taiwan is currently the highest point of friction between Beijing and Washington. And obviously the Taiwanese island is vital in the Pacific strategy. And although China wants to incorporate Taiwan into the People’s Republic of China, an invasion of the island, despite the enormous pressure exerted by the Asian giant, will not happen at the moment given the numerous consequences that this entails. China always repeats that Taiwan is part of its territory, but Taipei reiterates that it is an independent nation after separating from mainland China in 1949.
