KHUSHAB:
Amid the ongoing Russo-Ukraine war, Taiwan seems to become another major hotspot for the US-China rivalry to exacerbate. The US officially maintains the policy of strategic ambiguity towards Taiwan, considering it part of China. The tensions between the US and China began to rise in 2016 when the then US President, Donald Trump, called his Taiwanese counterpart — something that China regarded as US divergence from its stated policy of ambiguity. President Joe Biden’s remarks in his recently concluded tour of the Middle East that the US would provide all-out support to Taiwan should China attack it further escalated differences between the two countries.
Until recently, the dispute remained limited to verbal exchanges, but the recent visit to Taiwan of a high-level US delegation led by Nancy Pelosi antagonised China which regarded it as interference in its internal affairs. Unless sanity prevails, it seems that the world is heading towards another major global crisis between the two leading economies. The ongoing war in Ukraine has dealt a severe blow to the world economy, resulting in an economic recession, with the developing countries suffering the most. Should another war break out, the consequences would be far devastating, pushing millions of people around the globe below the poverty line.
Therefore, the two leading powers must show restraint before the fragile world order completely deteriorates and polarises the world community. The world needs unity to tackle pressing issues such as climate change, terrorism and poverty. The US must adhere to its policy of strategic ambiguity in a true spirit, as any divergence from it would invite China’s retaliation. China and Taiwan should engage in bilateral dialogue and consider implementing the One China two System framework for greater economic inter-linkages and peace. Any Chinese attempt to forcefully annex Taiwan will trigger the latter, a thriving democracy, to react intensely.
Published in The Express Tribune, August 8th, 2022.
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