Taiwan Still Wants More Weapons

Taiwan's US-made F-16 fighter jets release flares during war games.
Photograph: Sam Yeh/AFP/Getty Images

Taiwan To Seek More Arms Despite Improved China Ties -- AFP

TAIPEI — Taiwan's defence minister has vowed to seek more weaponry from the United States, which he said would give the island greater confidence in pushing for rapprochement talks with China.

The remarks come as Beijing and Washington are locked in an escalating row over a massive US arms sale to Taiwan, which Beijing insists is part of its territory awaiting reunification, by force if necessary.

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My Comment: Every day that Taiwan remains independent and free is a state of affairs that the Chinese Central Government finds difficult to accept. The reason why is that China is not as unified as the international press and China's Government likes to portray.

Most Westerners view China as one large monolithic state with a billion plus citizens. The reality on the ground is different. China is a country made up of numerous territories and provinces who have always had a certain degree of autonomy ... and antipathy towards Beijing and the Central Government.

This is why the democracy protests at Tienanmen in 1989 had to be put down. The fear is that if the Central Government becomes weak, the provinces and outer regions of China would then ask for autonomy and (in some cases) independence from the Central Government. Even in the heartland of China .... there is a demand for less central power and more provincial responsibility.

Taiwan is just a victim of China's own internal politics, and the US with its military weapons is just a sideshow and excuse to what the Chinese authorities really fear .... the man on the Chinese street who wants more power to run (and be responsible for) his own governance.