Obama forfeits respect in Asia by letting Taiwan down – hard

Taipei needs “regular, strong, visible signs of US support,” wrote a security expert at the The Taiwan Link, an anonymous blog, after blasting the decision as a “failing policy” toward an historic ally. “Insecurity created by even the perception of waning US support has historically resulted in radical policies in Taiwan,” wrote the commentator with an insider’s knowledge of the Asia policy establishment in Washington.

For now, the Taiwanese are trying to cope with the shock. “We are so disappointed in the United States,” an exasperated Taiwanese defense official told the Taipei Times on hearing news of the decision, which was first reported by Wendell Minnick in Defense News.

If the decision stands, “disappointment” would be an understatement. The failure to make plans for replacing Taiwan’s obsolescent air force with advanced aircraft would be a turning point across the Taiwan Strait, even as Chinese naval and missile threats are poorly deterred. Until now, China has had the quantitative superiority in air power, but Taiwan’s qualitative edge has made the difference. Meanwhile, China is modernizing its air force at warp speed with more advanced fighters coming into production.

If Taiwan does not keep up, the impact will be felt across East Asia, especially by Japan. In pleading his government’s case, Andrew Yang, Taiwan’s vice-minister of defense for policy, told Defense News recently that the island’s security interests are closely linked with those of its oldest ally, the US.
“If we don’t get the F-16 C/Ds to replace our vintage fighters, then we lose our leverage and immediately face the challenge of fulfilling our responsibility of preserving peace and stability in the region,” Mr. Yang said. That would increase Washington’s burdens, he added.

Move could cost the US

Yang’s working assumption that Taiwan still has a role in US security policy in East Asia is correct, though it is sometimes disputed. And it points to why the denial of an effective air defense could ultimately be costly for the US. With shrinking resources across the vast US Pacific Command and geographically limited locations for its bases, the US military requires the full complement of Taiwan’s air patrols, intelligence gathering, and air combat capabilities.

This lethal combination of strategic confusion and accommodationist politics gives the appearance of Washington turning away from a fellow democracy as it drifts into the orbit of a hostile authoritarian state. That is not a reassuring message to our Asian allies and friends, old or new.

Regardless of how prosperous and newly influential China may be, the long history of US relations with Taiwan celebrates values that Beijing cannot deny. They include democratic institutions and a free society based on universal human rights and the rule of law. These place the island-nation among the most valuable members of the international community.

To throw away these values in favor of business-as-usual with Beijing is neither good policy nor smart diplomacy. And it is no way for the US to re-engage as a Pacific nation and win respect.

Julian Baum is a journalist formerly based in both Taipei and Beijing.

Editor's note: An earlier version incorrectly identified the name of the anonymous Taiwan blog.

Previous

1 | 2