Taiwan Says China's Military Buildup Undermines New Ties

Source: The Wall Street Journal by Ting-I Tsai

TAIPEI -- China is capable of deterring foreign militaries from assisting Taiwan if the two sides were to go to war, Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense said in a report that highlights the continued buildup of Beijing's military toward the island despite rapidly improving political and commercial ties.

In the latest edition of its biennial military review, issued Tuesday, the Taiwan ministry said China is increasing the number of missiles it has aimed at Taiwan, which it says now total around 1,500. It said Beijing's military posture toward Taiwan has hindered efforts to establish mutual trust or cooperation between the two sides. "We have not been able to make progress in confidence-building measures because China has not given up ... the notion of using force against Taiwan," the ministry said.

Taiwan and China have been ruled separately since they split amid civil war 60 years ago, but Beijing claims the democratically governed island as part of its territory and insists Taiwan must eventually unify with mainland China. In recent years, China's government has ratcheted back its threats to use force against Taiwan to prevent permanent independence, but it hasn't renounced the use of force and has continued a buildup of its military aimed in part at preparing for any possible conflict over Taiwan.

Meanwhile, overall relations have improved significantly in the past 17 months, since Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou took office pledging to end the hostility that had long governed relations with China. The two sides have since launched their first regular, direct commercial flights and are negotiating a possible free-trade deal.

Spokesmen for China's Taiwan Affairs Office and Ministry of National Defense couldn't be reached to comment. Chinese officials have previously said confidence-building measures are possible only if Taiwan first agrees that it is part of "one China."

The U.S., while it doesn't maintain formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan, is the island's most important international friend. It is obligated by the 1979 Taiwan Relations Act to help provide defensive weapons to Taiwan, and the U.S. could intercede if China attacked the island.

Taiwan is also trying to buy more weapons from the U.S.

While China's military capability has grown steadily, Tuesday's report was the first by the Taiwan ministry to state outright that Beijing now has the ability to fend off any foreign intervention.

Alexander Huang, a strategic studies professor at Tamkang University in Taipei, said part of Beijing's strategy is to make Taiwan's leaders more pliant by convincing them "that foreign militaries would be so afraid of assisting Taiwan."

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