Taiwan, one of the unresolved issues in East Asia...

[sgmaven]

Despite the "important ally" status of Taiwan, the US has not sold the top-of-the-line fighters to the Taiwanese Air Force. At the moment, they only have F-16s, Mirage 2000s and F-5s. They don't seem to have access too the more modern F-35s, that the RSAF has managed to procure from the US. I guess that is why the Taiwanese have spent so much money developing their own aircraft.

Edited August 16, 2022 by sgmaven

[singalion]

On 8/16/2022 at 8:43 PM, sgmaven said:

Despite the "important ally" status of Taiwan, the US has not sold the top-of-the-line fighters to the Taiwanese Air Force. At the moment, they only have F-16s, Mirage 2000s and F-5s. They don't seem to have access too the more modern F-35s, that the RSAF has managed to procure from the US. I guess that is why the Taiwanese have spent so much money developing their own aircraft.

 

The reason could be the same problem that the US is facing in Ukraine. The weapons could fall into the hands of the enemy (there Russia, here China).

 

I personally also think this is the main reason why Germany is not selling their top tanks to the Ukraine and the US as a NATO ally might have had a "say" or "recommendation" on this.

 

Taiwan is already infiltrated with Chinese spies... keeping technology advances secret might be in danger.

 

This is also a reason why no major tech company has set up relevant manufacturing in Taiwan.

 

 

[sgmaven]

On 8/16/2022 at 9:01 PM, singalion said:

The reason could be the same problem that the US is facing in Ukraine. The weapons could fall into the hands of the enemy (there Russia, here China).

 

I personally also think this is the main reason why Germany is not selling their top tanks to the Ukraine and the US as a NATO ally might have had a "say" or "recommendation" on this.

Fighter jets are much more mobile than tanks. If Taiwan really came under PRC-Chinese attack, and it became a lost cause, the Taiwanese could reasonably still fly these jets to Korea or the Philippines, where the US maintains bases. All this could be part of a condition for the sale of the fighters.

 

On 8/16/2022 at 9:01 PM, singalion said:

Taiwan is already infiltrated with Chinese spies... keeping technology advances secret might be in danger.

I sincerely doubt that China only has spies in Taiwan. They have also infiltrated the US too. So what is the difference?

 

On 8/16/2022 at 9:01 PM, singalion said:

This is also a reason why no major tech company has set up relevant manufacturing in Taiwan.

Yet almost all the US tech companies use TSMC to manufacture their most advanced chipsets. Wouldn't that be strategically risky, since that would "risk" the Chinese stealing all those secrets in that case?

[7heaven]

On 8/16/2022 at 7:36 PM, sgmaven said:

With all your "skills and experience", I am sure OAN will take you up!

I am happy with exposing falsehoods and hysterical nonsense here, which there are a lot. It would keep me busy enough. 

[Steve5380]

On 8/16/2022 at 7:43 AM, sgmaven said:

Despite the "important ally" status of Taiwan, the US has not sold the top-of-the-line fighters to the Taiwanese Air Force. At the moment, they only have F-16s, Mirage 2000s and F-5s. They don't seem to have access too the more modern F-35s, that the RSAF has managed to procure from the US. I guess that is why the Taiwanese have spent so much money developing their own aircraft.

 

Maybe it would be sufficient to train the Taiwanese fighter pilots on the F-35s in the US, so that if need arises they can fly these planes from American aircraft carriers fully loaded to their country, and engage their enemy.

[Steve5380]

On 8/16/2022 at 10:43 AM, 7heaven said:

I am happy with exposing falsehoods and hysterical nonsense here, which there are a lot. It would keep me busy enough. 

 

Don't try so hard.  You already are exposing some of the worse falsehoods and hysterical nonsense by posting them yourself.

[Steve5380]

On 8/16/2022 at 8:21 AM, sgmaven said:

 

Yet almost all the US tech companies use TSMC to manufacture their most advanced chipsets. Wouldn't that be strategically risky, since that would "risk" the Chinese stealing all those secrets in that case?

 

 

It is very difficult to guess the functions and functioning of chips with many millions of gates on them, without having the design data, and data of what they interface to.   Test vectors are not sufficient for this.

.

Edited August 16, 2022 by Steve5380

[sgmaven]

On 8/17/2022 at 3:18 AM, Steve5380 said:

Maybe it would be sufficient to train the Taiwanese fighter pilots on the F-35s in the US, so that if need arises they can fly these planes from American aircraft carriers fully loaded to their country, and engage their enemy.

Perhaps, but there isn't any provision for the Taiwanese pilots to be trained to fly F-35s...

[singalion]

On 8/17/2022 at 4:02 AM, sgmaven said:

Perhaps, but there isn't any provision for the Taiwanese pilots to be trained to fly F-35s...

 

Have you thought, maybe secretly?

 

it is still military intelligence...

 

[Why?]

There are still a lot of people today who fell prey to the hook, line, and sinker of western medias.  It makes sense why conversing with some of you is so uninteresting and is a serious insult to my intelligence.  Please grow up.  Wait!!! Are you old folks already past adulthood and unable to advance? Oh my goodness!

[singalion]

Maybe we don't fall prey to fearmongers, gaslighters and manipulators....

 

Not sure whether your post was a sign of intelligence... 😂

[7heaven]

On 8/17/2022 at 3:19 AM, Steve5380 said:

 

Don't try so hard.  You already are exposing some of the worse falsehoods and hysterical nonsense by posting them yourself.

I don’t need to try very hard because the level of falsehoods and hysterical nonsense posted by quite a few usual characters here are so obvious. It’s the sheer volume as these characters cannot control themselves. 

[Steve5380]

On 8/17/2022 at 5:16 AM, 7heaven said:

I don’t need to try very hard because the level of falsehoods and hysterical nonsense posted by quite a few usual characters here are so obvious. It’s the sheer volume as these characters cannot control themselves. 

 

I don't want to put you down, and I have nothing to gain from the correctness of your opinions. 

 

As you know,  I am religion-neutral,  ethnicity-neutral, race-neutral, and in reality also politics-neutral.  I have alternated between conservative and liberal,  and in today's America I vote for democrats and despise the republicans.  This is not so much because of the respective ideologies but because of the individuals who are participating in the government for these parties.  I like to judge these individuals and their acts of government one by one, and not because they belong to this or that party.

 

This is why I cannot conceive that a rational person with integrity can be pro-Trump.  I have disliked Joe Biden a lot in the past, but today I cannot justify all the anti-Biden nonsense spewed around.  Even less any anti-Obama.  I am middle-class, and I don't have much to benefit from policies that help the poor or help the rich.   So I cannot justify all the falsity, all the lies directed at condemning the economics of the Biden administration and praising the ones of the Trump administration. 

 

You, my friend,  unfortunately have been pushing all the falsities that I have plenty of reasons to despise,  and I don't want to pass a judgment that you are a complete idiot.  This is why I tag you instead as a "teaser",  something that members may find to be too mild.  But again,  I am not affected by your opinions, and I don't believe anyone is.   

[sgmaven]

Well, there are those in our midst, who are not "teasers", but "shit-stirrers"... Those not content, unless they kick the proverbial hornet's nest.

 

And then, there are those who hate the US. There is so much hate (not sure where it springs from), that they support anything that will destroy the US as a nation. This hate goes beyond rationality, because they would rather see the "whole house burn down", if it means a particular room (the US) also gets burnt to ashes.

[singalion]

On 8/17/2022 at 6:16 PM, 7heaven said:

I don’t need to try very hard because the level of falsehoods and hysterical nonsense posted by quite a few usual characters here are so obvious. It’s the sheer volume as these characters cannot control themselves. 

 

Good that you were talking about yourself!

 

Self-awareness is a good tool to enter the path to improvement.

 

 

[7heaven]

On 8/18/2022 at 6:30 AM, Steve5380 said:

 

I don't want to put you down, and I have nothing to gain from the correctness of your opinions. 

 

As you know,  I am religion-neutral,  ethnicity-neutral, race-neutral, and in reality also politics-neutral.  I have alternated between conservative and liberal,  and in today's America I vote for democrats and despise the republicans.  This is not so much because of the respective ideologies but because of the individuals who are participating in the government for these parties.  I like to judge these individuals and their acts of government one by one, and not because they belong to this or that party.

 

This is why I cannot conceive that a rational person with integrity can be pro-Trump.  I have disliked Joe Biden a lot in the past, but today I cannot justify all the anti-Biden nonsense spewed around.  Even less any anti-Obama.  I am middle-class, and I don't have much to benefit from policies that help the poor or help the rich.   So I cannot justify all the falsity, all the lies directed at condemning the economics of the Biden administration and praising the ones of the Trump administration. 

 

You, my friend,  unfortunately have been pushing all the falsities that I have plenty of reasons to despise,  and I don't want to pass a judgment that you are a complete idiot.  This is why I tag you instead as a "teaser",  something that members may find to be too mild.  But again,  I am not affected by your opinions, and I don't believe anyone is.   

You don’t have to feel restrained in putting anyone up or down, or left or right because it doesn’t matter to me. 
 

Everyone is entitled to make assessment and conclusions about politicians.I don’t judge anyone by their party affiliation but by what they stand for and what they do. Unfortunately your definition of falsities are different from mine. I cannot conceive that an objective and rational person with integrity can be pro-Obama or pro-Biden. 
 

More unfortunately is the amount of falsities pandered freely by the media and deranged people about Trump simply because they are jealous that the politicians they like cannot hold a candle to trump and what he has achieved for US in a short span of 4years.
 

They are trying their best to witch hunt and prevent him from running again in 2024. They are frightened that he will leave behind a shining legacy that Obama and Biden etc will be nothing but a fleeting distant memory. 

[PlayersGroup]

On 8/18/2022 at 5:09 PM, 7heaven said:

I cannot conceive that an objective and rational person with integrity can be pro-Obama or pro-Biden. 

 

Is it that

 

1. someone who is is objective and rational cannot be pro-Biden or pro-Obama?

 

Or that

 

2. someone who is pro-Biden or pro-Obama is automatically classified as not objective or not rational?

 

Slight difference in wording, big difference in meaning.

 

I empathise with your inability to conceive the notion that others can have a different point of view. If your aim is only to say others are irrational and wrong, you have already achieved it, we heard you. 

 

If you cannot conceive how others have their own views, then what really do you want to get from people here in a discussion forum? Satisfaction from trolling? If so, may I suggest you do it at the right forum, this has nothing to do with Taiwan or East Asia.

 

Edited August 18, 2022 by PlayersGroup

[sgmaven]

On 8/18/2022 at 5:47 PM, PlayersGroup said:

I empathise with your inability to conceive the notion that others can have a different point of view. If your aim is only to say others are irrational and wrong, you have already achieved it, we heard you.

That is why I said that some here are not for honest discourse, but just to kick the "proverbial hornet's nest"...

[singalion]

Hey Guys, the topic here is Taiwan!

 

Can we get back to Taiwan please.

 

[sgmaven]

Having been to Taiwan before and after martial law, I think that Taiwan's sense of democracy has really developed since the lifting of martial law. With that, Taiwan and mainland China grew further and further apart in mindset and national psyche. I think it would have been way easier to unify China and Taiwan, if Taiwan had never exited martial law. Now, trying to do that, will be trying to undo years of progress.

 

I can understand why the Taiwanese don't trust Xi Jinping to keep to his promise of "One Country, Two Systems", since they have a real-life example in Hong Kong. Hong Kong was supposed to maintain that level of autonomy for at least 50 years (according to the agreement with the UK on the return of HK), but the mainland government started clamping down on democratic freedoms less than halfway through those 50 years. How can Taiwan trust China to let them be? They are not so foolish....

[7heaven]

On 8/18/2022 at 5:47 PM, PlayersGroup said:

 

Is it that

 

1. someone who is is objective and rational cannot be pro-Biden or pro-Obama?

 

Or that

 

2. someone who is pro-Biden or pro-Obama is automatically classified as not objective or not rational?

 

Slight difference in wording, big difference in meaning.

 

I empathise with your inability to conceive the notion that others can have a different point of view. If your aim is only to say others are irrational and wrong, you have already achieved it, we heard you. 

 

If you cannot conceive how others have their own views, then what really do you want to get from people here in a discussion forum? Satisfaction from trolling? If so, may I suggest you do it at the right forum, this has nothing to do with Taiwan or East Asia.

 

It is someone who is rational and objective will not be pro-Obama or pro-Biden. 
 

I empathise with your incorrect assumption that I cannot accept different point of view. 

 

Satisfaction comes from pointing out all the falsifies about certain topics.
 

There are others here who are discussing about other topics other than Taiwan and East Asia, and I don’t see them being reminded to post in the correct forum. 

[singalion]

 

 

US, Taiwan push to deepen trade ties amid China tensions

Published 19 Aug 2022

 

WASHINGTON (BLOOMBERG, NYTIMES, REUTERS) - The United States and Taiwan have started formal negotiations on a bilateral trade initiative to deepen economic ties, in a move likely to inflame already high tensions with China.

The first round of trade talks is set to take place early this autumn, the Office of the US Trade Representative said in a statement on Wednesday (Aug 17), unveiling a negotiating mandate for the US-Taiwan Initiative on 21st Century Trade announced in June.

Deputy US Trade Representative Sarah Bianchi said: "We plan to pursue an ambitious schedule for achieving high-standard commitments and meaningful outcomes covering the eleven trade areas in the negotiating mandate that will help build a fairer, more prosperous and resilient 21st-century economy."

 

 

 

https://www.straitstimes.com/world/united-states/us-taiwan-to-start-formal-trade-talks-under-new-initiative

 

[PlayersGroup]

Need to be aware and don't fall prey to these information manipulation tactics. It can happen to any country, by any country. 

 

https://foreignpolicy.com/2022/08/02/china-pelosi-taiwan-information/

 

It is because of the risk of being manipulated that I'm very careful with the views online, especially with regards to local politics.

 

I'm neither pro or anti PAP or opposition hence I keep asking myself if a particular view or opinion is fair, or if statistics and information have been interpreted accurately. 

 

Misinformation works by giving you 4 facts and sneak in a 5th questionable claim, again and again until they frame the conversation.

 

Most of the fake accounts on FB or elsewhere eventually want you to agree with or at least sympathize with the position of a foreign power. If it doesn't work, they use fake accounts and some real accounts, take extreme ends of both sides of argument then divide the people or cast doubt on authorities so as to weaken our own institutions. They have local sounding names, text lingo voice exactly like a local.

 

And then you have so-called local politicians who also become other countries' government mouthpiece. Whether the issue is tanks, covid vaccines, South China Sea.

 

If it can happen to Taiwan, it can happen anywhere. I'm quite sure Americans do it too. There's no easy way with this, except to be very careful in differentiating facts from opinions or emotional manipulation. If a post is making you angry, it is playing on our emotions. Just refuse to react to it, think it through and respond, or ignore.

 

Edited August 19, 2022 by PlayersGroup

[sgmaven]

On 8/19/2022 at 12:15 PM, PlayersGroup said:

If a post is making you angry, it is playing on our emotions. Just refuse to react to it, think it through and respond, or ignore.

Actually, social media very much depends on triggering emotions of viewers/readers. Research has shown that a person becomes more engaged with a platform when their emotions are triggered. Unfortunately, these platforms are being used by various groups to trigger the emotions and beliefs of gullible people who view these pages. That is also another reason why many headlines are so "eye-catching", such as "China's Economy Is About To Collapse". Surely a title like that will "attract" more attention than something milder, like "China's Economy Experiences Headwinds"... You get the idea...

[singalion]

On 8/19/2022 at 4:38 PM, sgmaven said:

Actually, social media very much depends on triggering emotions of viewers/readers. Research has shown that a person becomes more engaged with a platform when their emotions are triggered. Unfortunately, these platforms are being used by various groups to trigger the emotions and beliefs of gullible people who view these pages. That is also another reason why many headlines are so "eye-catching", such as "China's Economy Is About To Collapse". Surely a title like that will "attract" more attention than something milder, like "China's Economy Experiences Headwinds"... You get the idea...

 

I see more an issue that plenty social media works just on "headlines" but not informing on the background or relevance.

Something I call sensationalisation.

 

It will say: China is attacking Taiwan with military drills. Then the headline is repeated into 1 million twitter users and people think China has started a real war.

 

Just take a look what often happens in India when people get agitated on such social media messages...

 

 

[sgmaven]

On 8/19/2022 at 4:50 PM, singalion said:

I see more an issue that plenty social media works just on "headlines" but not informing on the background or relevance.

Something I call sensationalisation.

 

It will say: China is attacking Taiwan with military drills. Then the headline is repeated into 1 million twitter users and people think China has started a real war.

 

Just take a look what often happens in India when people get agitated on such social media messages...

Isn't sensationalisation just try to trigger emotions?

[sgmaven]

It is also a result of the TLDR generation. Hardly anyone wants to do the hard work and do background research. They just want the "answers" fast and easy, not bothering to check the motives of the one providing the "answers".

[singalion]

On 8/19/2022 at 4:56 PM, sgmaven said:

It is also a result of the TLDR generation. Hardly anyone wants to do the hard work and do background research. They just want the "answers" fast and easy, not bothering to check the motives of the one providing the "answers".

 

But then they go to a cinema and watch a 3 hours Batman blockbuster... 😆

[sgmaven]

On 8/19/2022 at 4:59 PM, singalion said:

But then they go to a cinema and watch a 3 hours Batman blockbuster... 😆

That is because they don't need to think during those 3 hours... 3 hours of mindless entertainment... The world is full of people who don't want to think... If you know the work of Daniel Kahnerman, they are completely System 1.

[singalion]

 

Don’t believe China’s convenient historical tales. Taiwan belongs to the Taiwanese

 

Thu 18 Aug 2022

 

 

There is much talk from Beijing about how the island has been part of China since time immemorial. The reality is more complicated

 

 

 

A night market in Taipei. More than 80% of Taiwanese people favour the democratic status quo. Photograph: stockinasia/Getty Images

Thu 18 Aug 2022 11.00 BSTLast modified on Thu 18 Aug 2022 13.02 BST

 

 

 

The American sinologist Lucian Pye famously said that China is a “civilisation pretending to be a nation-state”. But it is precisely the opposite: China is a modern nation-state that pretends to be an ancient civilisation – when it suits its expansionist ambitions.

 

Nowhere is this clearer than it the way it talks about Taiwan, which it claims has been part of China since time immemorial. The government recently published a white paper – released in the context of unprecedented live-fire drills aimed at intimidating Taiwan after Nancy Pelosi’s visit – which begins by referencing the dispatching of troops to Taiwan by the Sui Dynasty (581–618). Chinese territorial claims over Taiwan often cite the history of the Ming dynasty warlord Koxinga, who made Taiwan his base of operations during his short-lived Kingdom of Tungning (1661-1683), or Taiwan’s formal incorporation into the Qing dynasty as a province in 1887.

 

Yet references to dynastic Chinese history to justify contemporary territorial claims are spurious. After all, the Chinese Communist party, which rules over the People’s Republic, is precisely one of the historical forces that overthrew imperial China. And the CCP has never controlled Taiwan in its 75-year history. It is not as though a pre-modern polity simply sending troops to Taiwan means that an entirely different polity, 1,500 years later, has the right to control it.

 

Where Koxinga is concerned, while Chinese nationalists revere him as a historical figure seen as subjugating Taiwan for China, he was also half-Japanese. As a result, during Taiwan’s 50-year period under Japanese colonial rule, from 1895 to 1945 – another event that splits Taiwan’s history from that of the Chinese mainland – Koxinga was used to emphasise Japanese claims over Taiwan. Lastly, Koxinga is remembered as a genocidal Columbus-esque figure by Taiwan’s indigenous people, who had settled the land and were its original inhabitants long before Han settlers arrived.

 

Even during its incorporation under the Qing, China did not control all of the island of Taiwan, and it seemed uninterested in it as a territory. Hence it was ceded to the Japanese in 1895 after the Sino-Japanese war, only a short eight years after its incorporation.

 

One has to wonder why ancient, pre-modern history seems to trump the contemporary will of the Taiwanese people for self-determination, which is to say, the pragmatic position of maintaining Taiwan’s status quo of de facto independence. Polls released by National Chengchi University’s Election Study Center last month found that more than 80% of the population prefer maintaining the democratic status quo in some form, while only 1.3% wanted immediate unification with China.

 

While Beijing threatens force against the Taiwanese if they pursue independence – as seen in the China ambassador to the UK’s recent declaration that “‘Taiwan independence’ means war” – it also militarily threatens Taiwan for simply seeking to maintain the democratic freedoms that it already has.

 

China otherwise touts three communiques between the US and China on Taiwan in the 1970s and 1980s, or the 1992 consensus between the CCP and Taiwan’s ruling Kuomintang (KMT), as more historically recent rationales for its claims over Taiwan. Yet the US and China did not come to any agreement on Taiwan in the three communiques. And China frequently conflates the US One China Policy, which acknowledges (but does not recognise) the PRC position that Taiwan is part of China, with its own One China Principle, which asserts that there is only one state that is China, which is the PRC, and that Taiwan is part of China.

 

The 1992 consensus was the result of a meeting between the KMT and the Communist party on the mainland. Both parties agreed that there was “One China”, but the meaning of this term was interpreted differently. Moreover, non-KMT political parties have long questioned whether any agreement was actually made or was a post-facto fabrication – ultimately, this was not a decision negotiated by a democratically elected Taiwanese government. Rather it was negotiated solely by the KMT, which ruled over Taiwan for decades as a one-party dictatorship, before the first direct presidential elections in 1996.

 

Nationalist renderings of history are always suspect – and the official Chinese line on Taiwan is no different. The Taiwanese have long sought pragmatic ways to maintain their democratic freedoms, without becoming entangled in a bloody war with China that would cost both Taiwanese and Chinese lives. So what is the way forward? Perhaps it begins with listening to Taiwanese voices about how they view their own history and the paths that they see to preserve political freedoms and avoid conflict – rather than heeding to views imposed from without on the basis of dubious history.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2022/aug/18/china-convenient-historical-tales-taiwan

 

 

 

 

[sgmaven]

The PRC likes to refer to land under the former-Qing Dynasty, as their land, partly because it is the closest historical dynasty to modern day, and that it was China with the greatest extent of a land empire. Most of us, who know a bit of Chinese history, know that China, under the various dynasties, never had the same borders. Taiwan, was always considered a backwater, once it came under the Chinese orbit. That is why it was a pirate's den for so long.

[Steve5380]

On 8/19/2022 at 3:56 AM, sgmaven said:

 

It is also a result of the TLDR generation. 

 

 

TLDR...  I might not have adapted to the new generation. 

I like to write long stuff. 

And maybe this is why nobody reads it.

But I still get my satisfaction of writing it.  And this is what I value.   

[Steve5380]

On 8/19/2022 at 4:04 AM, singalion said:

 

Nationalist renderings of history are always suspect – and the official Chinese line on Taiwan is no different. The Taiwanese have long sought pragmatic ways to maintain their democratic freedoms, without becoming entangled in a bloody war with China that would cost both Taiwanese and Chinese lives. So what is the way forward? Perhaps it begins with listening to Taiwanese voices about how they view their own history and the paths that they see to preserve political freedoms and avoid conflict – rather than heeding to views imposed from without on the basis of dubious history.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2022/aug/18/china-convenient-historical-tales-taiwan

 

 

Hopefully the situation remains stable for some time until the US has large productions of hypersonic nuclear missiles and powerful laser guns.  Then they can sell some of them to Taiwan in exchange for microchips, and train the  Taiwanese how to use them.

[begleitung]

TW rocks

[Steve5380]

On 9/2/2022 at 12:38 AM, begleitung said:

TW rocks

 

TW rocks and Ukraine rolls. 

 

If the Ukrainian army is not careful,  they will find themselves invading Russia if they follow blindly the retreating Russians.

[Guest The Motive]

On 8/20/2022 at 8:45 AM, Steve5380 said:

 

Hopefully the situation remains stable for some time until the US has large productions of hypersonic nuclear missiles and powerful laser guns.  Then they can sell some of them to Taiwan in exchange for microchips, and train the  Taiwanese how to use them.

I fully agree.  The best scenario goiing forward is to sell all the high tech military equipment to Taiwan.  If Taiwan loss the war, which is most likely scenario, China wiill seize all those high tech equipments and use it as research material....

 

Is it the reason why America is not so willing to sell advance equipments to Taiwan but kept forcing Taiwan to buy 2nd hand outdated and excess military stocks?  It seems America knows Taiwan will not win the war, so decided to raid Taiwan military reserves by forcing Taiwan to buy military equipments from America at "high price"?

[sgmaven]

If Taiwan were to get access to the latest in military technology, such as the fighter jets, it will surely provoke China further. The US is playing a similar game with the Ukraine, by supplying their army with weapons, but not so much as to cause the conflict to escalate beyond the Ukraine.

[singalion]

On 9/13/2022 at 5:34 PM, sgmaven said:

If Taiwan were to get access to the latest in military technology, such as the fighter jets, it will surely provoke China further. The US is playing a similar game with the Ukraine, by supplying their army with weapons, but not so much as to cause the conflict to escalate beyond the Ukraine.

 

But there is some hesitation to sell the latest technology to Ukraine as the US and other countries (i.e. Germany for the Leopard tank) to fall into the arms of the Russians aka China. There are certain military secrets involved...

which would lead again to an ex President of...

 

Some technologies are not to be shared to the "enemy" as they would challenge their advantage.

This is also why the US is quite careful to what countries it will supply F16 or other military equipment.

 

The line about avoiding "provocation" is just a pretext.

 

[singalion]

 

 

Taiwanese military confirms for first time PLA drones crossed Taiwan Strait median line

11 Sep, 2022

 

• It is the first time that UAVs from mainland China are known to have crossed the unofficial line that divides the strait
• Drone made crossing along with warplanes on Thursday, while more sorties were logged on Friday and Saturday

 

 

[Guest Oh well..]

On 9/13/2022 at 7:43 PM, singalion said:

 

 

Taiwanese military confirms for first time PLA drones crossed Taiwan Strait median line

11 Sep, 2022

 

• It is the first time that UAVs from mainland China are known to have crossed the unofficial line that divides the strait
• Drone made crossing along with warplanes on Thursday, while more sorties were logged on Friday and Saturday

 

 

PRC is just doing the warming up exercise,  don't fuss over it.  It will attack unless  being provoked again by the West.  Only then, I fully support the invasion to close the tiresome case of Strait bickering for decades, once and for all. 

[singalion]

On 9/13/2022 at 9:06 PM, Guest Oh well.. said:

PRC is just doing the warming up exercise,  don't fuss over it.  It will attack unless  being provoked again by the West.  Only then, I fully support the invasion to close the tiresome case of Strait bickering for decades, once and for all. 

 

The PRC is provoked if already a feather falls on the floor...the PRC will never dare an attack. It could have done so since 1972.... but.... 

 

Taiwan is a good pretext to keep the PRC people aligned with the CCP. 

 

You better watch the encroachment of the PRC into the South  China see...

 

 

[sgmaven]

Anyone who wishes for war to occur is either evil, or doesn't care to understand the atrocities of war. No one wins in a war, the people are the ones who suffer. So, I would support any flexing of muscle and trading of terse statements, as long as it will avert a war.

[Steve5380]

Taiwan just experience a 6.9 magnitude earthquake.  Let's hope that the damage is minor

 

https://www.cnn.com/2022/09/18/asia/taiwan-earthquake-tsunami-warnings-intl/index.html

 

https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/powerful-earthquake-hits-southeast-taiwan-2022-09-18/

 

"Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) (2330.TW), , the world's largest contract chipmaker, said there was "no known significant impact for now"."

 

It is fortunate that semiconductor manufacturing was not majorly affected,  since we all need their chips!

 

 

 

 

[singalion]

 

December 11, 2022

 

Senior U.S. delegation to visit China in coming days

 

WASHINGTON, Dec 10 (Reuters) - A high-level U.S. delegation will travel to China next week to follow up on President Joe Biden's recent talks with Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping and prepare for Secretary of State Antony Blinken's visit there early next year, the U.S. State Department said on Saturday.

The U.S. announcement follows comments by a senior White House official that China wants stabilized relations with the United States in the short term as it faces domestic economic challenges and pushback in Asia to its assertive diplomacy.

 

Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Daniel Kritenbrink and National Security Council Senior Director for China and Taiwan Laura Rosenberger will travel to China, South Korea and Japan from December 11-14, the State Department said in a statement.

 

U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping engaged in blunt talks over Taiwan and North Korea on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Indonesia in mid-November, a meeting aimed at preventing strained U.S.-China ties from spilling into a new Cold War.

 

The two leaders pledged more frequent communications at a time of simmering differences also on human rights, Russia's invasion of Ukraine and economic issues.

The State Department said the delegation will follow up on the meeting "to continue responsibly managing the competition between our two countries and to explore potential areas of cooperation" and will also lay the groundwork for Blinken's visit.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Guest Wasting Xi's time]

11 minutes ago, singalion said:

The two leaders pledged more frequent communications at a time of simmering differences also on human rights, Russia's invasion of Ukraine and economic issues.

 

The human rights situation in China is flawless. China did not start the war in Ukraine. China did not penalize other nations due to economic concerns. What else needs to be said by America diplomats before DARING to set foot on Chinese territory, America needs to examine its own SINS.

[singalion]

 

China never penalised any other nations. no, never...

 

 

1)

China imposes retaliatory sanctions against US over Xinjiang

The tit-for-tat sanctions add to spiralling tension over complaints of abuses of Muslim Uighurs in China’s northwestern Xinjiang region.

 

2)

China on Friday announced sanctions on US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and her family, accompanied by “countermeasures” against the US, following Pelosi’s Taiwan visit earlier this week.

Beijing also announced at least eight “countermeasures” against the US over Pelosi’s Taiwan trip

 

3)

China hits Australian industries with economic sanctions amid souring ties

China has hit several Australian industries with economic sanctions as part of punishment over Canberra's criticism of Beijing blocking investigations into origin of pandemic

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Steve5380]

8 hours ago, singalion said:

 

China never penalised any other nations. no, never...

 

 

Yes, but... isn't this obvious?

 

Look how nicely China is treating Hong Kong after it took it over from the UK.  How they have improved the personal freedoms of the population formerly subjugated by the British.  And in retribution, the Hong Kong habitants now LOVE China.

[sgmaven]

15 hours ago, Steve5380 said:

 

Yes, but... isn't this obvious?

 

Look how nicely China is treating Hong Kong after it took it over from the UK.  How they have improved the personal freedoms of the population formerly subjugated by the British.  And in retribution, the Hong Kong habitants now LOVE China.

Or what about Xinjiang? Or Tibet? Don't the local Xinjiang Uighurs and Tibetans just love the Central Government for suppressing their religion and culture?

[singalion]

 

 

 

😱 The Republican House Speaker McCarthy has just brought Taiwan on the brink of a war with China...

 

 

 

 

 

Chinese military activity including a carrier strike group about 200 nautical miles (370km) off the main island’s coastline, after the Taiwanese president, Tsai Ing-wen, met US House speaker Kevin McCarthy in Los Angeles.

 

Beijing has reacted angrily to the meeting between Taiwan’s leader and McCarthy, who is the second in line to the US presidency, accusing the pair of undermining its claim over Taiwan, conniving on “separatist” aims, and degrading China-US relations.

McCarthy, a Republican who became the most senior figure to meet a Taiwanese leader on American soil in decades

 

 

 

 

[singalion]

I thought China doesn't issue sanctions?

No? What? Yes?

The reaction from China is so childish...

 

Here on sanctions:

 

Feb 24, 2022

China is also certainly not a fan of economic sanctions and on Wednesday, a spokesperson of the Chinese Foreign Ministry made that very clear.   

At a regular press briefing in Beijing, Hua Chunying, spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, expressed China's consistent opposition to all "illegal unilateral sanctions." The Chinese government's position, she said, is that imposing sanctions has never been a fundamental and effective way to solve problems.

 

Then why does China issue sanctions now????

 

China sanctions US figures after Taiwan president’s talks with House speaker

US thinktank and Reagan Foundation targeted, as well as Taiwan’s de facto ambassador to the US, in row over President Tsai Ing-wen’s trip

 

Fri 7 Apr 2023

 

China has imposed sanctions on US figures linked to the Taiwan president’s visit to the US this week, as well as further restrictions on Taiwan’s de facto ambassador to the United States.

The sanctions targeted the Ronald Reagan library which hosted the meeting between Tsai and US House speak Kevin McCarthy, and the Hudson Institute which hosted Tsai in New York and presented her with an award.

Four US nationals were listed, including the chair and director of the Hudson Institute, and the current head and former director of the Reagan Foundation.

A second round of sanctions was also unveiled against Hsiao Bi-khim, Taiwan’s de facto ambassador to the US.

 

The moves come after Tsai met the US House speaker during a stopover in LA.

The sanctions prohibit the targets and their family members from entering the mainland, Hong Kong and Macau, state media reported on Friday. They also prohibit investors and firms related to the targets from cooperating with mainland organisations and individuals.

 

 

In August last year, China imposed sanctions on seven Taiwanese officials and lawmakers including Hsiao whom it accused of being “independence diehards” after then-US House speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan.

Beijing considers Taiwan to be Chinese territory, to be “reunified” by force if necessary. Tsai has said Taiwan is a sovereign nation and its future is up to its people to decide.

On Friday China’s Taiwan affairs office accused the US institutions and executives of “provid[ing] a platform and convenience for Tsai Ing-wen to engage in ‘Taiwan independence’ separatist activities”.

Hsiao Bi-khim, Taiwan’s de factor ambassador to the US. Photograph: Tyrone Siu/Reuters

 

It also announced “punishments” on a Taiwanese organisation, the Prospect Foundation, which counts former Taiwanese ministers and executives on its board, and the regional Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats, accusing them of having “gone all out to ingratiate themselves with anti-China forces”.

Chinese sanctions will have little practical impact on Hsiao as senior Taiwanese officials do not visit China, and Chinese courts do not have jurisdiction in Taiwan.

Wow, the PRC just sanctioned me again, for the second time. pic.twitter.com/vojvhFB5RK

— Bi-khim Hsiao 蕭美琴 (@bikhim) April 7, 2023

It is the latest move after China deployed People’s Liberation Army (PLA) warships through waters around Taiwan and vowed a “firm and forceful” response to Tsai meeting McCarthy.

China had repeatedly warned both sides that the meeting should not take place, and deployed an aircraft carrier strike group through waters south-east of Taiwan hours before the talks.

 

 

Three additional PLA warships, one fighter jet, and one ship-launched anti-submarine helicopter were detected near Taiwan inside its air defence identification zone on Thursday, Taiwan’s defence ministry said. A spokesman told the Guardian the ships were ones “that are normally around the Taiwan Strait”.

Japan’s ministry of defence also reported a Chinese intelligence gathering ship on Thursday, sailing between Japan’s Okinawa and Miyakojima islands, northeast of Taiwan. It also reported the return journey of a PLA Navy guided-missile frigate detected about 100km off Taiwan’s coast on Wednesday.

China also deployed coastguard vessels for unusual “board and inspect” patrols that triggered a protest from Taiwan. Taiwan’s defence ministry instructed Taiwanese vessels, including cargo and ferry services, not to cooperate with attempts by the patrol to board and inspect them.

The US called on China “to cease its military, diplomatic and economic pressure against Taiwan and instead engage in meaningful diplomacy”.

“We remain committed to maintaining open channels of communication so as to prevent the risk of any kind of miscalculation,” a state department spokesman, Vedant Patel, said on Thursday.

 

Tensions flared around the island last August, following a visit to the island by Pelosi. China then deployed warships, missiles and fighter jets into the waters and skies around Taiwan, its largest show of force in years.

Its response to the McCarthy meeting has so far been on a much lower level, but still left Taiwan on high alert.

Tsai said face-to-face meetings with US officials were important for “regional peace” and called on Beijing to remain calm.

“I also hope the Chinese side can exercise self-restraint and don’t overreact,” she said at a pre-departure press briefing in Los Angeles.