The logic and virtue of American “strategic ambiguity” are more important than ever.
Illustration by Tim Marrs.
By the time my plane touched down in Taiwan, The Economist had labeled the island “the most dangerous place on earth.” This was shortly after Nancy Pelosi, the Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, had visited Taipei — an offense in the eyes of the Chinese Communist Party in Beijing that justified an unprecedented military show of force.
During the first three weeks of August, People’s Liberation Army (PLA) aircraft intruded across 'the center line' accepted by both sides into Taiwan's air defense zone, carried out six “live fire” exercises around the island, and for the first time fired missiles right over the island and into Japan’s exclusive economic zone. Many feared a Chinese version of Vladimir Putin’s “special military operation” in the Ukraine was in the making.
I had traveled there as part of a delegation from Stanford University’s Hoover Institution, with which the Asia Society has a joint Taiwan project examining microprocessors an
Exclusive longform investigative journalism, Q&As, news and analysis, and data on Chinese business elites and corporations. We publish China scoops you won't find anywhere else.
A weekly curated reading list on China from David Barboza, Pulitzer Prize-winning former Shanghai correspondent for The New York Times.
A daily roundup of China finance, business and economics headlines.
We offer discounts for groups, institutions and students. Go to our Subscriptions page for details.
A long line of multinationals are now knocking on India's door. But if there's any chance of them successfully diversifying away from China's highly skilled workforce and well-oiled logistical machine, they'll need to learn from the industries that came before them.
The former Defense Secretary under George W. Bush and Barack Obama talks about Xi Jinping's relations with the PLA, Taiwan and how the U.S. should deal with China and Russia.
The Global Intelligence Platform used by The Wire China