The Department of Defense today notified Congress on the sale of $6.4 billion in arms to Taiwan, including patriot missiles, black hawk helicopters and assistance for its military communications network. This almost clears the books on sales committed to by President George W. Bush since 2001. President Bush himself closed the deal on half of it in the Fall of 2008 just before leaving office. President Barack Obama is to be commended for making the second part of the sale happen in the face of vociferous, and in some ways …
President Obama hosted a “townhall” meeting in Shanghai, accepting questions from his Chinese audience. One questioner gave Obama the opening to discuss the prospect of arms sales to Taiwan, an issue that is sure to arise when the President meets with Hu Jintao in Beijing. Unfortunately, rather than forthrightly stating that the United States, in line with longstanding policy and the Taiwan Relations Act (TRA), was prepared to sell Taiwan defensive weapons, President Obama said nothing at all. Instead, he chose to dodge the question, noting that the US favored …
The damage is done. The Empire State Building was lit read and yellow last night to celebrate the 60th anniversary China’s communist revolution. It is hard to imagine a more inappropriate – indeed, offensive – use of an iconic American symbol. No one begrudges China lifting its people from poverty. But that remarkable achievement has been accomplished only over the last 30 years – after China abandoned its communist moorings and began to embrace free market principles. Until then, the Chinese communist party was responsible only for terrible human tragedy. …
Residents and visitors of New York City will experience an odd phenomenon tonight. The Empire State Building, a symbol of American strength, determination and might will be colored Red and Yellow to honor the 60th anniversary of China’s communist regime taking power. Lighting the building for special occasions is not abnormal, as it has been lit to honor everything from the Fourth of July, to Caribbean tourism, to the Yankees and Mets, or to honor the film, The Wizard of Oz. But is it appropriate to honor what happened in …
Senior U.S. officials made two major statements last week concerning the implications of China’s military modernization: On Tuesday, Dennis Blair, the Director of National Intelligence, released the 2009 National Intelligence Strategy Document, identifying Chinas military modernization and natural resources-focused diplomacy as a “complex global challenge.” Then on Wednesday, Secretary of Defense Gates discussed how China’s military capabilities were enhancing their “ability to disrupt our freedom of movement and narrow our strategic options. Their investments in cyber and anti-satellite warfare, anti-air and anti-ship weaponry, and ballistic missiles could threaten America’s primary …
It is nice that the President is reaching across the aisle for an Ambassador to the People’s Republic of China. Foreign policy should be bi-partisan. It is a demonstration to the Chinese that there is more that unites Americans than divides us. The selection of Utah Governor Jon Huntsman Jr., a businessman and free trader, will also send a positive signal regarding the central importance of truly free markets in our interaction with the Chinese. Of course, from the President’s perspective, choosing a Republican is probably also an effort to …
A Round up of Op-eds from the Heritage Foundation US: Why We are All Winners – Israel Ortega Many of us who are first-generation Americans retain immediate connections to nations truly savaged by civil unrest, ethnic and class conflict and political violence. We don’t have to think too hard to think of places where “suffrage,” “elections” and even “democracy” are generally just catchy slogans[...] Conservatism’s Death: Greatly Exaggerated – Ernest Istook Liberal pundits such as the Washington Post’s E.J. Dionne were quick to interpret the recent elections as “a definitive …
The Bush Administration has in place a freeze on arms sales to Taiwan. That’s correct: an arms freeze on democratic Taiwan. And this freeze comes at a time when Taiwan is in the delicate process of negotiating a re-engagement with undemocratic China to lessen tensions in the Taiwan Strait. But to engage Beijing, Taiwan’s new president Ma Ying-jeou correctly believes he must negotiate from strength, and that strength must include both a robust security relationship and the vocal enthusiasm of the U.S. government. President Ma has requested the Bush Administration …
The Heritage Foundation’s Distinguished Fellow in China Policy Ambassador Harvey Feldman is in Taipei and has filed some great commentary on Ma Ying-jeou’s victory over Frank Hsieh Chang-ting, including: Although Ma has said he holds out hope of an ultimate unification of Taiwan with China, it can come only many years in the future, and after China has become completely democratic. In the meantime, while saying he does not favor Taiwan acquiring offensive weapons — a position shared in Washington — he wants to see a “hardened, more capable” Taiwanese …
