By Tao Wenzhao
Word came on June 9 that Costa Rica had broken off diplomatic
relations with Taiwan and established relations with the People's
Republic of China (PRC).
The news caught the Taiwan authorities off-guard and touched off
panic on the island.
Costa Rica is not the first Central American country to
establish diplomatic ties with China.
In the 1980s, Nicaragua, under the rule of the Sandinista
National Liberation Front, severed its ties with Taiwan and
established diplomatic relations with the PRC.
Nicaragua, however, resumed diplomatic relations with Taiwan
after the Sandinistas went into the political wilderness in 1991.
The Sandinista National Liberation Front returned to power at the
beginning of this year after winning general elections. The Taiwan
authorities, fearing that President Daniel Ortega would break ties
with Taiwan again, are making great efforts to prevent that from
happening.
James Huang, the top Taiwan official in charge of overseas
affairs, made a lobbying tour to Nicaragua, offering the Central
American country generators to ease its chronic power shortages.
Then news came that Costa Rica had broken off diplomatic ties with
Taiwan. The situation faced by the Taiwan authorities is like that
described by a Chinese saying: "Hardly has one gourd been pushed
under water when another bobs up."
Central America is where the countries that maintain diplomatic
ties with Taiwan are concentrated. Among the 24 countries
maintaining diplomatic relations with Taiwan, 12 are in Central and
South America. It is only natural that the Taiwan authorities give
particular importance to this area.
Traditionally, Central American nations have close connections
among themselves, influencing one another's policies.
So, the Taiwan authorities are particularly worried about a
possible domino effect triggered by Costa Rica's decision to
establish diplomatic ties with the PRC.
In fact, some Central American countries are showing signs of
moving in that direction. For example, Nicaraguan public opinion
clearly thinks that Nicaragua should have established diplomatic
ties with the PRC before Costa Rica. Honduras President Manuel
Zelaya also said that the possibility of establishing ties with any
country should not be ruled out, dictated by Honduras' own
interests.
After Costa Rica's break with Taiwan, the Taiwan authorities
came under increasing fire from the political opposition. They said
that Taiwan leader Chen Shui-bian's attempt at "correcting names"
by eliminating mention of "China" had made things worse.
While pushing for the island's membership in the World Health
Organization (WHO) under the name of "Taiwan", Chen Shui-bian was
actually forcing the countries that still maintain diplomatic ties
with Taiwan to show where they stood.
It turned out that the Central American countries that still
have diplomatic ties with Taiwan behaved rather ambiguously at the
May WHO vote on Taiwan's membership. Nicaragua and Panama were
absent, Haiti abstained and Costa Rica voted "Nay".
In the international arena, it is widely admitted that Taiwan is
part of China. The Taiwan authorities' attempts to join
international organizations such as the United Nations and WHO as a
sovereign country under the name of "Taiwan" are doomed to
failure.
In pushing their forlorn bid, the Taiwan authorities put the
countries that still maintain diplomatic ties with Taiwan in an
embarrassing position, while failing to win support from the
international community.
It is no accident that Costa Rica broke off relations with
Taiwan. The decision demonstrates that the PRC is gaining
increasing international influence and that the "Taiwan
independence" secessionist line adopted by the Taiwan authorities
runs counter to the will of people.
For a long time, the Taiwan authorities managed to maintain
diplomatic relations with some countries by lavishly giving out
money. But this approach seems to be losing effectiveness.
Backed by its rapid economic growth, the People's Republic of
China is having growing influence on international affairs.
In announcing the establishment of diplomatic relations with the
PRC, Costa Rican President Oscar Arias said: "It is my
responsibility to recognize a global player as important as the
People's Republic of China." He emphasized the economic and
geopolitical reality represented by the PRC.
Meanwhile, the PRC is actively developing trade and business
ties with the countries with which it does not yet have diplomatic
ties.
Just a few days ago, the Panama Canal International Advisory
Board met in Shanghai. Dani Kuzniecky, Panama's minister of canal
affairs, and other high-ranking Panamanian officials were impressed
by Shanghai's deep-water port of Yangshan and the East China Sea
Bridge.
In addition, sister-city relationships have been established
between some Chinese and Panamanian cities. All these exchanges are
powering the development of bilateral ties.
Over the last three decades, the opening-up of the Chinese
mainland has seen great success, bringing huge benefits to China
and the world.
The mainland also has its door wide open to Taiwan. The economic
and trade ties across the Taiwan Straits have been expanding. The
opening of the Chinese mainland lets the international community
see the Chinese government's determination to resolve the Taiwan
question via economic integration and peaceful means.
In contrast, the Taiwan economy is going from bad to worse. The
Taiwan authorities are pushing for "de jure independence", playing
one ethnic group against another, which only serves to split Taiwan
society.
The "Taiwan independence" elements believe that once the banner
of independence is raised, they can do what they want,
international realities aside. This kind of political approach does
not sell well in the international community.
The overall situation is that the one-China policy is becoming
increasingly popular. All attempts at pushing for "two Chinas" or
"one China, one Taiwan" are bound to end in failure. This is
evidenced by the outcome of the voting for Taiwan's WHO
membership.
The author is a researcher with the Institute of American
Studies, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.
(China Daily June 19, 2007)
