US should not allow Taiwan issue to hurt its all-important relationship with China

It is like opening Pandora’s box right in front of Beijing: on December 23, outgoing US President Barack Obama signed into law the National Defence Authorisation Act for Fiscal Year 2017. Section 1284 of the act authorises the secretary of defence to carry out a programme of exchanges between the United States and Taiwan involving senior military officers and top officials. This allows generals or flag officers of the US military on active duty, as well as Pentagon officials higher than the level of assistant defence secretary, to visit Taiwan.

The exchanges, allowing threat analysis, force planning, logistical support, intelligence collection and analysis, present a sharp contrast to the authorisation act for the fiscal year 2000, which restricts the US military’s exchanges with the Chinese military in 12 similar but more sophisticated operational areas, such as force projection operations, advanced combined-arms and joint combat operations and advanced logistical operations. In fact, if the 2000 act is implemented to the letter, there won’t be any significant exchanges between the Chinese and the US military except in humanitarian areas. Capitol Hill fears the exchanges might help enhance the People’s Liberation Army’s capabilities and “create a national security risk” for the US.

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Trump likes to say that he is unpredictable, but US-Taiwan relations are predictable. The stronger China becomes, the less the US can play the Taiwan issue as a wild card. Today, China is an indispensable partner for the US in addressing major global issues, including counterterrorism, climate change and the North Korean nuclear issue. America’s relationship with China far outweighs its ties with Taiwan. The last thing the US wants is to become involved in a war triggered by Taiwan’s move for independence.