Instead of taking a low profile and playing down any claims to Taiwan’s independent status like his more cautious DPP predecessor Tsai Ying-wen, Lai has lurched toward formal independence with a succession of speeches making the case for Taiwanese nationhood.
On the high-stakes Taiwan issue, Washington should tread carefully. Taiwan constitutes a core interest for China and the military balance gets ever more lopsided against Taiwan by the day.
American leaders should not hesitate to rein in Taiwan’s evidently reckless leader, perhaps with a private warning. It would not be the first time that Washington has rebuked Taipei for threatening the status quo.
In the meantime, the U.S. should refocus its defense efforts in the Pacific on protecting actual treaty allies Australia, Japan, the Philippines, and South Korea—a wholly realistic and sensible goal. But Taiwan does not represent a vital U.S. national security interest. It is not a treaty ally, nor are the various geostrategic or economic rationales to defend Taiwan enough to risk a potentially catastrophic great power war.
3. They are tighten domestic security measures and intensifying domestic propaganda.
nitro1122 on
A trump dick suck and a china apologist ? No thank you
YuckyStench on
I hate to derail what is a good point and article but the US has its own reckless leader so idk if actually thoughtful opinion pieces matter until at the very earliest after the 2026 midterms
bigwang123 on
“Shifting the focus to more affordable and widely dispersed ground combat systems makes sense for Taiwan.
But even that approach has problems. American M1 Abrams tanks joined Taiwan’s forces for the first time, but they have been paraded around Russia as trophies from the war in Ukraine. It’s beyond any doubt that the PLA has secured from Russia the very latest intelligence on this platform’s weak points and doctrine on defeating it. The same is true on the vaunted HIMARS system that have also arrived in Taiwan.”
“Defense acquisitions are troublesome because losses happen in wars” lmfao
Never mind the fact that Abrams and HIMARS procurement are still big ticket items that do not fit into the distributed/**affordable**/massed acquisitions that is a legitimate criticism of the Taiwanese military
Or that realistic training on the part of a military that has traditionally scripted large exercises, isolated from the people they are meant to defend, is a good thing, actually
Apprehensive-Soil-47 on
>In the meantime, the U.S. should refocus its defense efforts in the Pacific on protecting actual treaty allies Australia, Japan, the Philippines, and South Korea—a wholly realistic and sensible goal. But Taiwan does not represent a vital U.S. national security interest.
Defending those allies from China will be an order of magnitude more difficult if Taiwan is allowed to fall.
6 Comments
Instead of taking a low profile and playing down any claims to Taiwan’s independent status like his more cautious DPP predecessor Tsai Ying-wen, Lai has lurched toward formal independence with a succession of speeches making the case for Taiwanese nationhood.
On the high-stakes Taiwan issue, Washington should tread carefully. Taiwan constitutes a core interest for China and the military balance gets ever more lopsided against Taiwan by the day.
American leaders should not hesitate to rein in Taiwan’s evidently reckless leader, perhaps with a private warning. It would not be the first time that Washington has rebuked Taipei for threatening the status quo.
In the meantime, the U.S. should refocus its defense efforts in the Pacific on protecting actual treaty allies Australia, Japan, the Philippines, and South Korea—a wholly realistic and sensible goal. But Taiwan does not represent a vital U.S. national security interest. It is not a treaty ally, nor are the various geostrategic or economic rationales to defend Taiwan enough to risk a potentially catastrophic great power war.
DPP’s Taiwan these days is weird and worrisome.
1. They are openly courting MAGA
[1] https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-10-22/taiwan-is-courting-maga-influencers-to-get-trump-s-attention
2. They are suspected of supporting of Yoon Suk-Yoel’s martial law.
[1] https://www.joongang.co.kr/article/25297588
[2] http://www.amn.kr/54390
3. They are tighten domestic security measures and intensifying domestic propaganda.
A trump dick suck and a china apologist ? No thank you
I hate to derail what is a good point and article but the US has its own reckless leader so idk if actually thoughtful opinion pieces matter until at the very earliest after the 2026 midterms
“Shifting the focus to more affordable and widely dispersed ground combat systems makes sense for Taiwan.
But even that approach has problems. American M1 Abrams tanks joined Taiwan’s forces for the first time, but they have been paraded around Russia as trophies from the war in Ukraine. It’s beyond any doubt that the PLA has secured from Russia the very latest intelligence on this platform’s weak points and doctrine on defeating it. The same is true on the vaunted HIMARS system that have also arrived in Taiwan.”
“Defense acquisitions are troublesome because losses happen in wars” lmfao
Never mind the fact that Abrams and HIMARS procurement are still big ticket items that do not fit into the distributed/**affordable**/massed acquisitions that is a legitimate criticism of the Taiwanese military
Or that realistic training on the part of a military that has traditionally scripted large exercises, isolated from the people they are meant to defend, is a good thing, actually
>In the meantime, the U.S. should refocus its defense efforts in the Pacific on protecting actual treaty allies Australia, Japan, the Philippines, and South Korea—a wholly realistic and sensible goal. But Taiwan does not represent a vital U.S. national security interest.
Defending those allies from China will be an order of magnitude more difficult if Taiwan is allowed to fall.