Taiwan’s new president Tsai Ing-wen called for “positive dialogue” with China in her much-anticipated inauguration speech Friday, striking a conciliatory tone in the face of an increasingly hostile Beijing.
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Taiwan’s new president, Tsai Ing-wen, has a reputation as a patient, canny negotiator and she’ll need those skills as she takes responsibility for what is potentially one of Asia’s most risky flashpoints. Standing in front of a portrait of the founding father of the Republic of China, R.O.C., Dr. Sun Yat-sen, Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen recites the oath of office during the swearing-in ceremon…
“Beijing has responded to the January election of Tsai and her pro-independence Democratic Progressive Party [DPP] by intensifying pressure on Taiwan with military exercises, diplomatic moves and cross-border deportations and prosecutions”, reports the Associated Press (AP).
The DPP has traditionally leaned towards independence from China, and its victory has led to a cooling of cross-straits relations.
One segment took on a politically charged event, depicting the 1947 massacre of Taiwanese intellectuals by Nationalist troops from mainland China, an event that fuels nativist sentiments on the island.
“China’s strategy is not to make Taiwan more isolated from China, but more dependent on China”.
Beijing has also flexed its muscles in other ways over recent months, publicly urging Tsai to sign up to the “One China” principle, resuming diplomatic relations with Gambia, which had previously recognised Taiwan and reportedly restricting the number of mainland tourists visiting the island.
“She was extraordinarily capable”, said Chen, who last week was named an incoming deputy secretary-general of the National Security Council, which reports directly to the president.
Tsai, a soft-spoken USA and UK-educated lawyer, is viewed as a pragmatic leader but will have her work cut out balancing the interests of China, which is the island’s biggest trading partner, the United States, its key ally, and the diverse demands of the island’s 23 million residents.
Tsai ended her inaugural speech with a pledge to “safeguard democracy, freedom, and this country”, a line some pundits say will cause tempers to flare in Beijing.
They want the island’s economy to be thriving but more independent and are wary of any policy that ties Taiwan’s fate to people or policies across the strait.
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Taiwanese political scientist Shane Lee said he expected China to react, although not too strongly. The first item on the legislative agenda is a “supervisory” bill that requires Taiwan’s government to get legislative go-ahead before, during and after talks with Beijing. “My guess is that the Chinese will choose to see this as insufficient”.
