An American scholar, Dan Blumenthal, said the recent local election results show the Taiwanese fear of closer ties with China. His remarks were on his article entitled Five Lessons from Taiwan’s Elections that was published on the Foreign Policy website.
He said a Taiwanese president’s relationship with the US matters. He said that the US should support Taiwan in practical matters such as joining the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) so that Taiwan does not become marginalized.
Taiwan demographics are also changing. A younger generation that only favors cultural ties to China is now active. Support for political unification will continue to wither away.
He said Chinese President Xi Jinping will have to deal with a Taiwan that is drifting away, and his first test will be the presidential elections in 2016.
The scholar said the US will thus have to deal with a structurally unstable situation in Taiwan. China still believes it needs to make Taiwan a part of China so Taiwan will continue to be the main flashpoint in the Asia Pacific. Blumenthal is the director of Asian Studies at the American Enterprise Institute.