IN an address to the Taiwanese diplomats at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Taipei recently, Republic of China President Ma Ying-jeou explained the core concepts and rationale behind his “flexible diplomacy” policy.
According to Ma, his “flexible diplomacy” initiative is based on Taipei and Beijing pursuing rapprochement and a truce in the international arena, committing to not wasting national resources to win over diplomatic allies from each other, and refraining from conducting activities that would hurt either side’s interests.
“Flexible diplomacy does not require Taiwan to be at loggerheads with the mainland in each and every international encounter,” Ma said. “There simply is no need to perpetuate a vicious cycle. The cornerstone of this initiative is to achieve a certain degree of mutual trust across the strait on improving ties, so as to set aside controversies and create a win-win situation.”
The president made these remarks a week before he went on a visit to Latin American countries. They were the first, in-depth open explanation of his administration’s foreign policy initiative, which has also been referred to by the local media as “modus vivendi diplomacy.” Since Ma’s inauguration on May 20 this year, cross-strait relations have gradually improved, with Taiwan easing restrictions on commercial exchanges, allowing weekend direct cross-strait charter flights and opening up to more mainland Chinese tourists.
THE president stated that his “flexible diplomacy” approach is in line with former ROC leader Lee Teng-hui’s “pragmatic diplomacy.” Ma noted that diplomacy should not be a zero-sum game; rather, it should be based on pragmatism. He explained that over the past eight years, Taiwan’s foreign policy has centered on confrontation and upping financial inducements to forge diplomatic ties, which cost the island six allies.
Ma said that given Taiwan’s current level of development and per capita income, “it naturally behooves us to provide foreign assistance to less developed countries,” and “adequate foreign aid programs will help improve the ROC’s image among nonallies.”
By pursuing such a policy, Ma noted that Taiwan would demonstrate to important partners such as the United States, Japan and the European Union that it is a “responsible stakeholder” or “peacemaker” as it strives to improve cross-strait ties. The ROC’s future foreign aid programs will also be guided chiefly by humanitarian needs rather than diplomatic gains, he added.
“The most important asset of our foreign policy is our democracy, our way of life, our willingness to maintain cross-strait stability, and our determination to fulfill our obligations to the international community in accordance with the universalistic values of the family of nations,” Ma concluded.
It is indeed good news for friends of Taiwan, as Ma’s policy of dialogue rather than confrontation has materialized into more than words. Recently the Taiwan Stock Exchange (TSE) said it would seek to sign a memorandum of understanding with its Shanghai counterpart, in the latest sign of warming business ties between Taiwan and China.
The move is part of broader efforts by Taiwan’s new China-friendly administration to attract domestic listings by companies founded by Taiwanese but operating in China, as easing tensions boost investor interest in the local stock market.
Furthermore, Taiwan has also dropped plans to develop missiles that can cruise to China, according to some media sources. This decision was reached after the National Security Council and the Defense Ministry agreed that Taiwan should focus on self-defense rather than develop or acquire weapons of offensive capacity.
And as a further sign of thawing relations, the mainland China was Taiwan’s biggest export market in the first half of 2008, accounting for almost a third of the island’s exports, according to the island’s Trade Bureau.
Taiwan’s trade surplus with the mainland in the first half amounted to $24.4 billion, up 21.7 percent from the first half of last year and the highest level in four years, the bureau said in a report.
According to the report, the first-half cross-strait trade volume reached $56.76 billion, a 22.1 percent rise. The mainland’s exports to Taiwan reached $16.18 billion, up 23.1 percent, while imports from Taiwan totaled $40.58 billion, up 21.7 percent.
For friends of Taiwan, it is refreshing to note that in some ways, Taiwan is finally getting its just dues. We will continue to support their call for more.
