Peaceful coexistence with a large neighbor is now more difficult than perhaps ever before, Asia correspondent Mika Hentunen estimates.
Mika HentunenAsian correspondent
BEIJING The Chinese administration’s comments about the presidential election held in Taiwan on Saturday did not come as a surprise.
Beijing did not congratulate or even mention the election winner by name. He was a member of the Democratic Progressive Party DPP Lai Chiang-te.
Instead, China indirectly let us understand what it thinks about the Law or free elections in general.
– We resolutely oppose all separatist actions aimed at the independence of Taiwan, as well as the interference of foreign actors in the region’s affairs, the Chinese State Council informed, according to the news agency Reuters.
China’s unchanging position since 1949 has been that the island of Taiwan, with a population of just under 24 million, is a province belonging to it.
China tried in vain to influence Taiwan’s presidential election. Chinese state media accused Lai of being a separatist and even demanded an international arrest warrant for him. On social media, Chinese trolls called him a minion of the West.
It may be that China’s influence attempts made the voters show the middle finger to them.
Law challenger Hou Yu-ih campaigns with the theme “China should not be angered, but dialogue is needed”. It turned out to be the wrong election theme in 2024.
On election night, official China even tried to turn the result upside down. It claimed in comments shared with news agencies that the DPP, which won the election, “does not represent the mainstream of Taiwanese citizens.”
Since 2016, the DPP has been the ruling party in both parliament and the presidency, and now continues to be in power.
Lai has been the vice president of Taiwan for the past three years. The victory with a clear margin over the competitors indicates exceptionally broad support that crosses party lines.
Taiwan is a democracy. Its electoral system is considered one of the most reliable in the world.
There is no advance voting and voting machines are not used. The president is elected by a first-past-the-post ticket vote, where the person with the most votes wins.
During the reign of the DPP, even minor relations with China have weakened.
Also a western name William Lai The new president, who uses
Whether Beijing wants that is unclear. China’s final position on Lai is formed by the sum of several different factors.
In recent years, Taiwan has become an important topic in the management of superpower relations.
The US attitude towards Taiwan is divided. It is descriptive that the president Joe Biden recalled after the election result was confirmed, that the United States does not support Taiwan’s independence.
The official line of the United States is the so-called one-China policy, which means that it maintains diplomatic relations only with China, not with Taiwan.
However, Taiwan is a strategically important ally for it in East Asia. Taiwan’s military and especially economic importance to the United States seems to be growing all the time.
Seven people work in the EU delegation in Taipei, and there are already 600 employees in the American Institute in Taiwan, which corresponds to the US mission.
Although the United States does not officially recognize an independent Taiwan, it provides significant amounts of arms and other support.
House of Representatives of Congress passed three different laws on Friday by which the United States commits to protect Taiwan from Chinese pressure, either bilaterally or in international organizations.
What makes Taiwan vital to the world is its leading position as a microchip manufacturer.
More than 50 percent of all microchips in the world and 90 percent of the most advanced microchips are made in Taiwan.
China, the US and the EU are trying to close the gap. However, despite the right equipment and know-how, it cannot be done instantly, because microchips and circuits are created by casting in nanotechnology. The Taiwanese are 5–10 years ahead of others in this casting.
Microchips are needed in all electronics. Interruptions in the supply of microchips from Taiwan would also be immediately felt in the Finnish economy.
That’s why the threat of a conflict or even just a short sea barrier in Taiwan arouses mixed reactions of fear all over the world – and that fear has increased China’s recent military bluster around Taiwan.
Taiwan’s semiconductor giant TSMC has invested tens of billions of dollars for factories in Arizona, USA, and Dresden, Germany.
The investments aim to increase commercial cooperation and reduce the staggering global risk created by Taiwan’s technological superiority.
China does not look favorably on that cooperation.
As well as not Taiwan’s new president, government, parliament or any other of its institutions.