Roberto Abraham Scaruffi

Sunday, 25 April 2010

Weekly Report from Taiwan Security Research (Apr. 25, 2010)
For full text, click on the title or visit the TSR web page at taiwansecurity.org

Cross-Strait Issues
(AFP, Apr. 19, 2010) Taiwan's economic minister has said that signing a trade pact with Beijing will prompt other countries to sign free trade agreements with the island, according to a report.

(Taipei Times, Apr. 19, 2010) The third round of talks between Taiwan and China later this month on a proposed economic cooperation framework agreement is expected to produce a clear draft of an “early harvest” list of products and services for tariff concessions, a finance official said.

(Bloomberg, Apr. 20, 2010) Chinese visitors to Taiwan may surpass Japanese for the first time on record as relaxed rules spur travel to an island off limits to mainlanders for 60 years.

(Taipei Times, Apr. 22, 2010) A legislative committee meeting descended into a fight KMT and DPP lawmakers clashed over two proposed bills that would recognize Chinese diplomas and allow Chinese students to study in Taiwan.

U.S. Policy and U.S.-China Engagement
(Reuters, Apr. 22, 2010) The United States and China will formally resume their dialogue on human rights next month for the first time in two years, a further sign relations are stabilizing after disputes over Tibet, Taiwan and the value of China's currency.

US, Taiwan Should Cooperate to Thwart PRC:  Expert By William Lowther (Taipei Times, Apr. 22, 2010) A new study by Robert Kaplan — to be printed later this month in Foreign Affairs magazine — concludes that Washington and Taipei should work together to make the prospect of war seem “prohibitively costly” to Beijing.
   
PLA and Military Balance
(Reuters, Apr. 21, 2010) Japanese officials lodged a protest with Beijing over a Chinese helicopter they say flew too close to a Japanese destroyer in the waters off Okinawa, the Foreign Ministry said.

(New York Times, Apr. 23, 2010) The Chinese military is seeking to project naval power well beyond the Chinese coast, from the oil ports of the Middle East to the shipping lanes of the Pacific, military officials and analysts say.

(Defense News, Apr. 18, 2010) Taiwan's recently announced plans to build a new 900-ton warship is just the vanguard of a projected new generation of low-observable surface combatant vessels tailored to battle in the Taiwan Strait, analysts said.
  
Taiwan's Domestic Issues and Foreign Relations
(GVSRC, Apr. 21, 2010) 26.6 percent of the interviewed were satisfied with President Ma’s performance while 61.4 percent said dissatisfied.

(CNA, Apr. 21, 2010) The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) said that it was “deeply disappointed” with Taiwan's decision to require much stricter inspection procedures for beef tongue imported from the U.S.

(Taipei Times, Apr. 23, 2010) The US is looking into the extension of a Taiwanese ban on certain US beef products, American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) Director William Stanton said.

Paal Proposes APEC Invite for Ma Next Year By William Lowther (Taipei Times, Apr. 23, 2010) Douglas Paal, a former director of the AIT, is proposing that President Ma Ying-jeou be invited to the APEC summit to be hosted by the US in Honolulu in November next year.
(Taipei Times, Apr. 24, 2010) A group of US Congressmen are pushing for Taiwan to be awarded “observer status” in the International Civil Aviation Organization.

China's Rise and Domestic Issues
(New York Times, Apr. 19, 2010) The Internet, already a potent social force, has become China’s prime entertainment service.

Do the Awakening Giants Have Feet of Clay?—Part I By Pranab Bardhan (YaleGlobal, Apr. 19, 2010) While China and India have lifted millions out of poverty, both continue to work under structural constraints with much political uncertainty.
Do the Awakening Giants Have Feet of Clay?—Part II By Borje Ljunggren (YaleGlobal, Apr. 21, 2010) Börje Ljunggren, Sweden’s former ambassador to China, argues that the rise of Asian powers has momentum. In particular, China’s rapid economic development is likely ”the biggest change” of our lifetime.
China Replaces Leader of the Restive Xinjiang Region By Edward Wong (New York Times, Apr. 25, 2010) Chinese leaders announced that they had replaced Wang Lequan, the ruling official in the vast western region of Xinjiang.
(AP, Apr. 25, 2010) The long-sacrosanct one-child policy may be on its way out, as some demographers warn that China is facing the opposite problem: not enough babies.

Japan Policy
Breaking Point for the Alliance? By Brad Glosserman(PacNet #19, Pacific Forum, CSIS, Apr. 12, 2010) The real risk is from the US: It looks like the new Japanese government is taking the alliance for granted and that could trigger a backlash.
Japan Moves to Settle Dispute with U.S. Over Okinawa Base Relocation By John Pomfret (Washington Post, Apr. 24, 2010) The Japanese government indicated that it would broadly accept a plan to relocate a U.S. Marine Corps base on Okinawa, a move that could ease months of discord between the two allies, U.S. and Japanese, officials said.
Posted by Roberto Abraham Scaruffi at 20:40