Taiwan's Diplomatic Campaign: A High-Stakes Gamble

President Lee Teng-hui has initiated a bold diplomatic campaign, pressing President Bill Clinton to favor Taiwan over China in the escalating tensions between the two nations. Lee's efforts are a response to Clinton's perceived acceptance of Beijing's claim to sovereignty over Taiwan during a June 1998 visit to China. This move has set off a chain reaction, with Lee seeking to persuade the United States to support Taiwan's sovereignty while fending off China's claims.

Key Takeaways:

• President Lee Teng-hui has abandoned the 25-year-old "one China" principle in favor of "special state-to-state relations" between Taiwan and China.
• Lee's diplomatic campaign aims to persuade President Clinton to favor Taiwan over China, involving consultations with Western representatives, opposition politicians, and scholars.
• The US is facing a dilemma: siding with Taiwan's self-determination or accommodating China's emerging power.
• Key to working relations and gaining international support is to negotiate on a basis of equality in "state-to-state relations," a formula adopted by Lee.
• Since 1991, Lee has taken incremental steps to have Taiwan recognized as an independent nation, despite Beijing's claims that Taiwan is a province of China.
• Lee enlisted the support of former West German Chancellor Helmut Kohl, who advised Lee on how to work relations and gain international support.
• Lee's "special state-to-state" formula was outlined in a July 1998 interview with a German correspondent, pre-empting President Jiang Zemin's statement on the 50th anniversary of Communist China.
• Su Chi, chairman of the Mainland Affairs Council, declared the "one China" policy as defined by Beijing invalid.
• The stakes are high, with the rest of Asia watching closely to see how the US reacts, as the presidential election approaches.
• Taiwan is seeking recognition as a full-fledged democracy while China remains under authoritarian rule.

Statistics:

• Since 1991, Lee has taken incremental steps to have Taiwan recognized as an independent nation.
• The United States had acknowledged only that both sides claimed Taiwan until Clinton's statement in China in June 1998.
• 25 years had passed since the "one China" principle was established.
• Lee's diplomatic campaign has involved consultations with Western representatives, opposition politicians, and scholars.
• The United States and China have seen a significant deterioration in relations since late 1998, with allegations of spying on US nuclear laboratories, accusations of illicit contributions to Clinton's Democratic Party, and botched negotiations over China's entry into the World Trade Organization.

Sources:

• Interview with German correspondent on July 9, 1998.
• "Taiwan is already a full-fledged democracy, while the Chinese mainland remains under authoritarian rule" - President Lee Teng-hui, Foreign Affairs journal.
• The writer, a former military affairs correspondent, contributed this comment to the International Herald Tribune.