Special to WorldTribune.com
Washington-Taipei interaction, the most taboo issue in U.S.-China relations for the past five decades, is now entering a new stage.
The U.S. is breaking some of the most crucial norms of diplomacy and security by vigorously rekindling a strategic partnership with Taiwan, the island democracy that is under existential threat from the communist government in Beijing.
Taiwan became a thorny issue almost from the very beginning of the Trump presidency when President Tsai Ing-wen of Taiwan placed a congratulatory phone call to the president-elect and Trump took it, enraging Beijing greatly.
However, China gravely miscalculated this time as, unlike previous eight U.S. presidents, Trump resolved to break the Chinese diplomatic straightjacket by pivoting to Taiwan to balance China’s threats.
Two of the three chiefs in the executive branch appointed by Trump with Taiwan portfolios, i.e., the National Security Council, and the Departments of Defense and State, are lifetime Taiwan-friendly experts.
Last week’s announcement by the White House that the U.S. is lifting some age-old crucial restrictions on granting Taiwan market licenses for submarine technologies and parts is a great leap forward toward boosting Taiwan’s indigenous weapons manufacturing capabilities.
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