Why Xi’s response is not a golden opportunity for Taiwan

AT A recent chat, I was asked why Taiwan does not take the golden opportunity of “co-operation rather than confrontation” to improve its relationship with China, a statement offered by China’s President Xi to US President Joe Biden.

Here are the reasons. Taiwan is a peace-loving country and dedicates itself to promote co-operation for the best interests of its 24 million people. Taiwan has been a country that always strives for democracy, human rights, rule of laws and freedom. Unfortunately, Taiwan has been facing military threats from China since 1949.

China vows to reclaim Taiwan by force if necessary. It has deployed more than 1500 missiles aimed at Taiwan, with its warplanes invading Taiwan’s airspace daily during this Covid-19 pandemic. How can Taiwan co-operate in this instance?

Taiwan has been barred from the UN and the World Health Organization during the pandemic that has gripped the entire world. Even though Taiwan has been assisting so many countries globally with PPE equipment and humanitarian aid, it remains shut out of the WHO where its expertise could help so many, and its inclusion is needed for its people.

We welcome President Xi’s “co-operation rather than confrontation” remarks, but other than accepting his point of view, it is important to verify China’s real intention behind the words and its military operations.

Taiwan is a peaceful nation, an economic miracle, with great humanitarian work. We will continue to work with other democracies like South Africa to promote universal values. We do hope China will become a democracy for all Chinese to enjoy a better life. And, for sure, we will take that golden opportunity of a democratic China to improve the relations across the Taiwan Strait.