U.S.-Taiwan Relations in a New Era - Responding to a More Assertive China

The Task Force finds that • deterrence is steadily eroding in the Taiwan Strait and is at risk of failing, increasing the likelihood of Chinese aggression; • China does not yet have the ability to invade and seize Taiwan in the face of U. [...] For Beijing, the Taiwan issue is a question of sovereignty, “the core of the core interests of China” that is not subject to negotiation.7 The PRC, through its One China principle, argues that “there is only one China in the world, Taiwan is a part of China, and the govern- ment of the PRC is the sole legal government representing the whole of China.” 8 CCP propaganda asserts that Taiwan is a lost. [...] military per- sonnel from the island, arguing that it was up to the Chinese how to resolve this “internal affair.”13 The United States viewed Taiwan as one of many issues to discuss with the PRC during the normalization process, but it was by far the most important to the PRC. [...] policy to • declare that peace and stability in the area are in the political, security, and economic interests of the United States, and are matters of interna- tional concern; • make clear that the United States’ decision to establish diplomatic rela- tions with the PRC rests upon the expectation that the future of Taiwan will be determined by peaceful means; • consider any effort to determine t. [...] Reagan also penned a private letter to Deng Xiaoping, then China’s paramount leader, reiterating that “the United States has an abiding interest in the peaceful resolution of the Taiwan question.”17 The assertion of an “abiding interest” in the Introduction 17 Taiwan Strait signaled again to China that the United States reserved the right to intervene on Taiwan’s behalf if the PRC used force.