Thank you for your thoughtful proposals and for keeping Taiwan’s cause visible in Washington.
Many of your ideas — from advancing drones to securing independent communications — merit serious discussion. At the same time, Taiwan faces extraordinary constraints: vastly fewer resources than China, constant military pressure, and near-total diplomatic isolation. Our choices are often about survival under these conditions, not simply executing the optimal plan. I hope that alongside critique, friends of Taiwan will extend empathy for the difficult trade-offs we must make.
Enjoyed your recommendations and wonder why nobody else in power is acting. The arms deliveries to Taiwan seem forever delayed unsure why. If we can’t meet overall demand shouldn’t we be building more capacity? OTOH Taiwan arms seems a perennial issue that remains stalled.
Indeed rethinking the cheap drone deployment issue might draw in younger Taiwanese involvement perhaps useful long term. Ukraine being a prime example of youth creating new ways of war.
At least awakening Taiwan might cause China to take pause. Not sure China is ready to risk losing young men that it needs for its own future.
A recent policy implemented by Taiwan’s Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) administration has raised concerns among international observers. The regulation requires China-born citizens of free world countries, including, but not limited to, the United States, Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, Japan, and other European nations, to provide an official citizenship renunciation document certified and notarized by 海協會 Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits (ARATS) and 海基會 Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) to qualify for long-term stay visas. This requirement has drawn criticism for its potential to disproportionately affect overseas Chinese dissidents, who may face significant obstacles, if not persecution danger, in obtaining such documentation. The process, which must be completed in China, is reportedly costly and complex, raising concerns about accessibility. Critics argue that the policy discriminates based on birthplace, particularly impacting non-Chinese citizens born in China who are citizens of the aforementioned countries. Furthermore, the rationale behind the regulation has been questioned. Observers note that individuals able to easily obtain renunciation documents from Chinese authorities without scrutiny may warrant closer examination by Taiwan’s immigration, or even intelligence, authorities, rather than streamlined approval. This DPP policy has yet to attract widespread attention from key US government bodies, such as the U.S. Department of State or the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. However, if awareness grows, Taiwan may face broader diplomatic scrutiny beyond domestic or U.S.-based political factions, including those associated with the MAGA movement. The implications of this regulation could receive backlash or even strain Taiwan’s relationships with key allies in the international community.
Dear Christian,
Thank you for your thoughtful proposals and for keeping Taiwan’s cause visible in Washington.
Many of your ideas — from advancing drones to securing independent communications — merit serious discussion. At the same time, Taiwan faces extraordinary constraints: vastly fewer resources than China, constant military pressure, and near-total diplomatic isolation. Our choices are often about survival under these conditions, not simply executing the optimal plan. I hope that alongside critique, friends of Taiwan will extend empathy for the difficult trade-offs we must make.
Best regards,
Simon H. Tang
Enjoyed your recommendations and wonder why nobody else in power is acting. The arms deliveries to Taiwan seem forever delayed unsure why. If we can’t meet overall demand shouldn’t we be building more capacity? OTOH Taiwan arms seems a perennial issue that remains stalled.
Indeed rethinking the cheap drone deployment issue might draw in younger Taiwanese involvement perhaps useful long term. Ukraine being a prime example of youth creating new ways of war.
At least awakening Taiwan might cause China to take pause. Not sure China is ready to risk losing young men that it needs for its own future.
Thanks for the article.
Excellent article. It's good to read proposals for a better future.
For those who read traditional Chinese more comfortably than English, please read my article here on Substack: https://open.substack.com/pub/dinods/p/814?r=69j3hc&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
A recent policy implemented by Taiwan’s Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) administration has raised concerns among international observers. The regulation requires China-born citizens of free world countries, including, but not limited to, the United States, Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, Japan, and other European nations, to provide an official citizenship renunciation document certified and notarized by 海協會 Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits (ARATS) and 海基會 Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) to qualify for long-term stay visas. This requirement has drawn criticism for its potential to disproportionately affect overseas Chinese dissidents, who may face significant obstacles, if not persecution danger, in obtaining such documentation. The process, which must be completed in China, is reportedly costly and complex, raising concerns about accessibility. Critics argue that the policy discriminates based on birthplace, particularly impacting non-Chinese citizens born in China who are citizens of the aforementioned countries. Furthermore, the rationale behind the regulation has been questioned. Observers note that individuals able to easily obtain renunciation documents from Chinese authorities without scrutiny may warrant closer examination by Taiwan’s immigration, or even intelligence, authorities, rather than streamlined approval. This DPP policy has yet to attract widespread attention from key US government bodies, such as the U.S. Department of State or the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. However, if awareness grows, Taiwan may face broader diplomatic scrutiny beyond domestic or U.S.-based political factions, including those associated with the MAGA movement. The implications of this regulation could receive backlash or even strain Taiwan’s relationships with key allies in the international community.