As a small country, Taiwan should maintain a position promoting regional peace that transcends domestic party lines and does not kowtow to international powers. In this respect, ROC President Ma Ying-jeou’s East China Sea peace initiative deserves affirmation.
If the ruling Kuomintang and major opposition the Democratic Progressive Party can stand together in support of the proposal, Taiwan will have a much stronger voice internationally, and its arguments will be more convincing. For this purpose, the KMT and DPP should open dialogue to reach consensus on the territorial dispute in the East China Sea.
Ma has proposed resolving the tensions surrounding the Diaoyutai Archipelago through the principles of ROC sovereignty, the shelving of disagreements, peace and reciprocity, and joint development of resources. To succeed, the initiative must rise above nationalism, partisanship and conflicts of interest among world powers.
For this reason, it was unwise for Ma to say earlier that with regard to the nation and the people, he would not concede a single inch. He should remember that in Taiwan there are great differences of opinion on national identity and ethnicity, and that such talk touches a very sensitive political nerve at home and also brings up the issue of relations with China.
Only a few days before Ma unveiled the initiative, DPP Chairman Su Tseng-chang said his party is opposed to conflict over the Diaoyutais, and in the South China Sea, advocates adherence to the South China Sea code of conduct. This position is essentially the same as that expressed in the East China Sea peace initiative, raising hopes that the KMT and DPP can stop bickering and present a united front for regional peace.
Taiwan, as a small country, does not have the resources to compete with major powers for geopolitical influence. Some commentators have argued that the only way Taiwan can make its voice heard is to deploy military forces to the Diaoyutais and South China Sea. But considering the country’s military strength, would this be wise? What could it actually achieve?
In addition, if the motive behind such a move included the wish to align with one of the dominant nations, it would exacerbate domestic political divisions and put Taiwan in the middle of a power struggle. Whether the choice was to side with China, Japan or the U.S., in the end Taiwan would be only a geopolitical pawn, to the detriment of the nation’s still fragile democracy.
On the issue of the Diaoyutais, civil society should support the bipartisan stance for peaceful resolution and shared exploration and development of resources as Taiwan’s best option, so the East China Sea can become a model for the resolution of international conflict, and Taiwan can participate in the promotion of global and regional peace. (THN)
Chien Hsi-chieh is executive director of the Peacetime Foundation of Taiwan. These views are the author’s and not necessarily those of Taiwan Today. Copyright © 2012 by Chien Hsi-chieh
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