Taipei — 9DASHLINE

US-China in 2024: One year after the spy balloon incident

Written by Rorry Daniels

While breakthroughs remain unlikely, the test in 2024 is whether the US and China can manage differences quietly and directly while under the political magnifying glass.

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Increased engagement with Taiwan needs less rhetoric and more (quiet) action

Written by Dr Simona Grano

The key question remains to define and push for concrete tools and policies through which Europe can transform its growing solidarity towards Taiwan into a foundational basis of Europe’s China policy, without failing because of hindrances developing out of tight economic dependencies with China.

Europe and the Indo-Pacific9DLDecember 20, 20239DashLine, Simona Grano, Increased engagement with Taiwan needs less rhetoric and more (quiet) action, China, Taiwan, geopolitics, geopolitical competition, US, trade, Beijing, Taiwan Strait, business, balance, democracy, Taiwan’s autonomy, universal public goods, COVID-19 pandemic, supply chains, semiconductor industry, like-minded, Russian invasion of Ukraine, human rights, Taiwan Issue, global economy, European Union, chip manufacturing industry, European Chips Act, trade agreement, China’s economic coercion, diversification, economic dependence, parliamentarian delegations, World Health Assembly (WHA), INTERPOL, ernational Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), COP28, public health, climate change, civil society, think tanks, NGOs, Taipei, Chinese trade practices, EU-China summit, de-risking

Taiwan’s ruling party: Reprioritising livelihood concerns?

Written by Roy Ngerng

Any party which is serious about protecting Taiwan’s democracy and sovereignty would need to prioritise workers’ rights.

Editor's Picks9DLJuly 19, 20239DashLine, Roy Ngerng, Taiwan’s ruling party: reprioritising livelihood concerns?, Taiwan, elections, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), President Tsai Ing-wen, voters, presidential election, Livelihood, United Daily News, survey, housing prices, wages, minimum wage, housing price-to-income ratio, Hong Kong, Taipei, Luxembourg, Sydney, vacation days, youth, affordability, US-China trade war, Taiwanese businesses, food prices, New Power Party (NPP), Vice Premier Shih Jun-ji, wage share, relative poverty, China’s threats, Kuomintang (KMT), Taiwan People’s Party (TPP), moderates, left-wing, right-wing, wealth inequality, centrist-right, Taiwan’s imbalanced economy, reform, social welfare, ‘progressive’ party, recession, strategic voting, local election, ruling party, Youth Employment Investment Program, Taiwan’s democracy, Basic Wage Deliberation Committee

Normative power Taiwan? Human rights and Taiwan-EU relations

Written by Marcin Jerzewski

In the context of Taiwan-EU relations, the primary objective of cooperation on human rights should be to address the main areas of concern delineated by the EU.

Italy-China relations under Meloni: Less hard-line than expected

Written by Lorenzo Lamperti

Unable to presently guarantee total alignment when it comes to sharing the American point of view on Russia and the current war in Ukraine, Meloni has chosen to present herself as fully aligned with Washington on the Chinese front.

Europe and the Indo-Pacific9DLFebruary 16, 20239dashline, Italy-China relations under Meloni: less hard-line than expected, Lorenzo Lamperti, Italy, Giorgia Meloni, Taiwan, China, Xi Jinping, Andrea Sing-Ying Lee, Brothers of Italy, right-wing, Taipei, United States, US, People's Republic of China, Forza Italia, the League, Lega, Silvio Berlusconi, Matteo Salvini, Putin, Ukraine, Russia, Russia-Ukraine war, Conte government, memorandum of understanding, MoU, Beijing, Belt and Road Initiative, BRI, Huawei, 5G, Mario Draghi, elections, 2022, Tibet, military action, democracy, Autocracy, Central News Agency, Lucio Malan, Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China, Interparliamentary Friendship Group, Tsai Ing-wen, G20 summit, Bali, Italian government, sanctions battle, Xinjiang conflict, Antonio Tajani, Wang Yi, bilateral dialogue, economic relations, crucial sectors, Chinese businesses, Golden Power, LPE, semiconductor equipment, Atlanticism, Guido Crosetto, Australia, Lithuania, foreign policy, ruling coalition, 15th Conference of Italian Ambassadors, Indo-Pacific

Taiwan: A partner for a resilient Indo-Pacific

Written by Dr Zsuzsa Anna Ferenczy

With the Taiwan Strait as a potential military flashpoint in the Indo-Pacific, embedding Taiwan in regional cooperation frameworks will support the efforts of like-minded democracies to deter Beijing’s destabilising actions which are affecting the entire region.

East Asia9DLFebruary 9, 20239dashline, Taiwan: a partner for a resilient Indo-Pacific, Zsuzsa Anna Ferenczy, Taiwan, Indo-Pacific, resilience, Taiwan strait, regional cooperation frameworks, China, Beijing, dialogue partner, destabilising actions, minilateral frameworks, diplomatic isolation, Taipei, revisionist posture, US-China geostrategic rivalry, minilateral cooperation, multilateralism, Quadrilateral Dialogue, Quad, Xi Jinping, Nancy Pelosi, semiconductors, bilateral ties, US, Washington, economic coercion, disinformation, global expansion, grey zone activities, Audrey Tang, COVID-19, infodemic, transparency, international cooperation, Russia, Russia-Ukraine war, national resilience, emergency preparedness, resource deployment capabilities, ASEAN, Nobuo Kishi, Australia-Taiwan partnership, Jenny Bloomfield, Supply Chain Resilience Initiative, SCRI, Artificial Intelligence, AI, Global Cooperation and Training Framework, GCTF, Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, CPTPP, Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association, JTEA

The Bougainville Autonomous Region: Balancing independence and foreign relations

Written by Dr Lucas Knotter

While it is tempting to view the relatively small island of Bougainville as merely drifting into the geopolitical whirlwinds of more powerful actors in the region, we should not forget that Bougainville also maintains considerable leverage in relation to these actors.

Pacific, Emerging Issues9DLJanuary 31, 20239dashline, Bougainville, Bougainville Autonomous Region, Lucas Knotter, Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit, APEC, Free Trade Area of the Asia Pacific, FTAAP, Antony Blinken, Papua New Guinea, US, James Marape, China, Xi Jinping, Pacific islands, Pacific island states, trade partner, Friend to all; Enemy to None, PNG, China-US tensions, Autonomous Region of Bougainville, ARB, 2019 referendum, PNG-US-China geopolitics, sovereignty, 2001 Bougainville Peace Agreement, Ishmael Toroama, Era Kone Covenant, post-referendum agreements, Bougainville independence, international recognition, independence, Panguna copper mine, natural resources, anti-colonial struggles, Australia, mine workers, environmental destruction, Bougainville Civil War, Sam Kauona, Belt and Road Initiative, Solomon Islands, 2021 unrest, Beijing, Global Fragility Act, GFA, 2015 Bougainville Mining Act, Taipei, Sovereign Wealth Fund, Richard Marles, defence

2023: The prospect of Pacific Island agency

9DASHLINE asks several experts for their assessment of the prospects for Pacific Island agency in 2023 international politics, especially beyond the 'big power influence' by the US and China that has so often been written about in 2022.

Pacific9DLJanuary 25, 20232023: The prospects of Pacific Island agency, 9DashLine, Pacific Islands, climate action, US-China competition for hegemony, Indo-Pacific security dynamics, big power influence, PRIESTLEY HABRU, heterogeneous, colonial, colonialism, great power competition, China, The Solomon Islands, Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare, United Nations General Assembly, democracy, Taipei, Beijing, economic development, former Fiji Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama, US President Joe Biden, US-Pacific Partnership Summit, Washington DC, Fiji, Sitiveni Rabuka, Australian Labor government, Australia, Pacific Island Forum (PIF), Suva, geopolitics, JOANNE WALLIS, UK, strategic competition, United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, South Pacific Nuclear Free Zone, climate change, Pacific Islands Forum’s ‘Blue Pacific’ narrative, Blue Pacific, ‘Partners in the Blue Pacific’ (PBP) initiative, New Zealand, Japan, MAIMA KORO, Samoa, US-Pacific Partnership Declaration, HENRIETTA MCNEILL, South Korea, European Union, Cook Islands, Niue, French territories, Micronesian states, 2050 Strategy for the Blue Pacific Continent

The fate of the Indo-Pacific: Lessons from Ukraine and US diplomacy towards Taiwan

Written by Reuben Steff and Martin Jirušek

Should war or a system of neo-Cold War style blocs emerge, it will be US allies and partners in the Indo-Pacific that form the new frontlines and that have the most to lose.

Pacific9DLNovember 23, 20229DashLine, Reuben Steff, The fate of the Indo-Pacific: Lessons from Ukraine and US diplomacy towards Taiwan, Martin Jirušek, Taiwan, US National Security Strategy, geopolitics, Europe, Indo-Pacific, super-order, security order, rules-based institutionalism, Moscow, China, USA, diplomacy, military, rebalancing, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, China’s rise, Cold War, ‘hub-and-spoke’ system, alliance, Washington, networked’ security architecture, minilateral, multilateral, defence, allies, National Defense Strategy, Beijing, zero-sum, tit-for-tat, AUKUS trilateral security pact, Indo-Pacific Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (QUAD), Australia, UK, United Kingdom, Japan, India, containment, trade war, microchips, blocs, Southeast Asia, South Pacific, Middle East, shatterbelts, nuclear proliferation, southeast asia, confidence building, Kyiv, Emmanuel Macron, peace, France, Democratic Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, Taipei, Pentagon, White House, de-escalation, Joe Biden, President Biden, ‘One China’ policy, NATO, Admiral Philip Davidson, US Congress, Admiral Mike Gilday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, invasion, Michael Beckley and, Hal Brands, peaking power trap, UN

Taiwan's midterm elections are about more than geopolitics

Written by Brian Hioe

Local midterm elections are more often about domestic issues than international, cross-strait ones, and it would be misleading to view Taiwanese politics solely through the frame of cross-strait issues.

Resilience and deterrence to guide Taiwan’s future

Written by Zsuzsa Anna Ferenczy

Strengthening deterrence in the face of growing hostility and new threats is where Taiwan’s leaders and citizens must focus more of their energy, in close cooperation with trusted partners, including the EU.

East Asia9DLOctober 25, 20229DashLine, Zsuzsa Anna Ferenczy, Resilience and deterrence to guide Taiwan’s future, Double Tenth National Day Celebration, President Tsai Ing-wen, Taiwan, resilience, deterrence, EU, post-pandemic recovery, climate crisis, economic inequality, authoritarian threat, strategic dependencies, Russia-Ukraine war, PRC, People's Republic of China, democracy protection, democracy promotion, supply chains, Beijing, economic statecraft, Taiwanese independence, Indo-Pacific, Indo-Pacific Strategy, Raphaël Glucksmann, European Parliament, disinformation, transparency, technology, fact-checking mechanisms, media literacy education, people-public-private partnership, #StrongerTogether, democracy, Audrey Tang, COVID-19 pandemic, semiconductors, New Southbound Policy, bilateral relations, Brussels, Resilient Supply Chains Agreement, Supply Chains Resilience Initiative, SCRI, Russia, sanctions, Taipei, Forward Alliance, Enoch Wu

In Brief: David McAllister MEP

Europe and the Indo-Pacific face increasingly similar challenges in a number of security related areas, such as cyber security, terrorism, organised crime, nuclear security, and non-proliferation. It makes sense to work together more.

In Brief9DLOctober 17, 2022In Brief, 9DashLine, In Brief: David McAllister MEP, Tereza Novotna, European Parliament, European Parliament’s Committee on Foreign Affairs, Committee on Foreign Affairs, David McAllister, David McAllister MEP, EPP, European People's Party, Germany, Korea, Indo-Pacific, European Union, Russia, Ukraine, Russian aggression, energy crisis, climate change, COVID-19, geostrategic, France, member states, EU Member States, oversea territories, Taiwan Strait, geopolitical, geopolitical competition, Japan, Republic of Korea, Australia, New Zealand, Russian war, sanctions, Moscow, cyber security, terrorism, organised crime, nuclear security, Non-proliferation, Indo-Pacific strategy, like-minded partners, ASEAN, European Council, Council of the European Union, Coordinated Maritime Presences, North-Western Indian Ocean, Maritime Area of Interest, Indian Ocean, naval exercises, Djibouti, India, Global Gateway, Europe’s Global Gateway, Global Gateway initiative, Brussels, Taipei, EU-Taiwan dialogue, European Army, Strategic Compass, Rapid Deployment Force, IN BRIEF: DAVID MCALLISTER MEP

Slowing the escalatory spiral over Taiwan

Written by Amanda Hsiao and Ivy Kwek

A long-lasting solution on Taiwan will be difficult to realise anytime soon. However, avoiding miscalculation and slowing the escalatory spiral that the parties are currently engaged in are achievable outcomes that Taipei, Washington, and Beijing should prioritise.

East Asia9DLSeptember 29, 20229DashLine, Slowing the escalatory spiral over Taiwan, Amanda Hsiao, Ivy Kwek, Taiwan, China, US, USA, escalatory spiral, escalation, Washington, Beijing, Taipei, US-China rivalry, US-China competition, US-China relations, military, military exercise, reunification, one China, one Taiwan, US-Taiwan relations, US Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Nancy Pelosi, cyberattacks, sanctions, Taiwanese, Chinese, sovereignty, Pelosi’s visit, median line, maritime, navy, airspace, drone, drones, human error, Pacific, US-Taiwan engagement, defence, defence spending, arms sale, arms package, Biden administration, Biden, Joe Biden, Central Asia, United Nations, 20th Party Congress, Party Congress, propaganda, Xi, Xi Jinping, amphibious invasion, amphibious, military intervention, Trump, Trump administration, Japan’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), Japan, Yonaguni Island, Philippines’ EEZ, Philippines, Manila, Taiwan conflict, Taiwan Strait, escalatory cycle, deter, deterrence, One China policy, One China Policy, One China, One-China, One-China Policy, Three Communiques, US Congress, Taiwan Policy Act

Seoul cannot have a credible Indo-Pacific strategy without Taiwan

Written by Zsuzsa Anna Ferenczy and Tereza Novotna

Much of this is also about how far Seoul will be prepared to join many of its partners in working with Taiwan. In other words, if South Korea wants to play a bigger role in the Indo-Pacific, it is high time that Seoul joins the ‘Taiwan club’.

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Will friction over Taiwan spark a US-China war?

Written by Rorry Daniels

Although there is an optimistic case to make that Taiwan is not the kindling for a great power ‘bonfire’, the tenuous bargain that has protected cross-Taiwan Strait peace and stability for 40 years is under intensified threat and requires mindful attention to preserve the peace in US-China and cross-Strait relations.

EU-Taiwan ties: Towards resilient global value chains

Written by Zsuzsa Anna Ferenczy

Addressing strategic dependencies and increasing resilience in the face of an assertive China by expanding cooperation with Taiwan has become a more sustainable path in the perception of many in Brussels.

Despite IPEF setback, Taiwan-ASEAN ties are on the right track

Written by Marshall Reid and Zoe Weaver-Lee

Fuelled by rapidly growing private investment, state-led cooperative initiatives and broader changes in regional trade flows, Taiwan has established itself as a key economic player in the ASEAN region.

Principled confidence to replace servility to dictators in new Czech foreign policy agenda

Written by Jakub Janda

Prague can even take the route of Lithuania and do the previously almost unimaginable: changing the official name of its bilateral diplomatic representations to include the word “Taiwan” instead of “Taipei”.