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One gap appeared over how to interpret China’s cyber, influence, and disinformation operations against the Taiwan public.īroadly speaking, officials and experts with responsibility for Taiwan’s foreign relations were more prone to frame China’s attacks as a form of “cognitive warfare.” They sought to present China’s efforts to influence public and political attitudes in Taiwan as a threatening element of a Chinese campaign to alter Taiwan from within. Responding to China’s “cognitive warfare”īelow the surface, there were a few variations in viewpoints among our Taiwan counterparts. Most of our Taiwan counterparts spoke of the need to keep international focus on China’s overreaction to Pelosi’s visit. By far the more common refrain was that the United States and Taiwan should work in lockstep to strengthen U.S.-Taiwan relations and solidify Taiwan’s international support. While some of our interlocutors called for the United States to project force in response to Beijing’s military exercises, such requests reflected a minority view.
America’s staunch advocacy for Taiwan’s international space, including through the G-7, the Quad, and other international groups, also has played a role. So, too, has Taiwan’s centrality to global value chains through its production of over 80% of the world’s advanced semiconductor chips. To be sure, Beijing’s intensifying diplomatic, economic, and military pressure has contributed to rising international awareness of Taiwan’s situation. Such a signal would have cratered public morale inside Taiwan and fed a feeling of international isolation, they warned. To do otherwise, they argued, would have communicated that visits to Taiwan are constrained by Beijing’s preferences. She instructed her administration to deprive China of any justification for escalating tensions in the Taiwan Strait.ĭuring our meetings, Taiwan’s leaders were unanimous that it was necessary for Taiwan to welcome Pelosi. Tsai has signaled that Taiwan will not flinch, but also will not provoke. That steadiness both reflects and is reflected in the temperament of Taiwan’s leader, President Tsai Ing-wen.
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Recognizing that it is not possible to form a full picture of Taiwan’s outlook based on one week on the ground, I nevertheless am sharing this situation report to help fill in the gaps at a time when COVID restrictions make it difficult to engage in such face-to-face exchanges.Īt the surface, there seemed to be public pride in Taiwan’s resilience in the face of China’s escalating pressure. Our group met with Taiwan’s top elected and appointed officials, opposition party leaders, business executives, public intellectuals, and members of civil society.
I visited Taiwan with Brookings colleagues from August 8-13.
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