Taiwan confronts China’s ‘war diplomacy’ with ‘war diplomacy’

China emphasizing economic and military power vs. Taiwan emphasizing democracy and human rights

“Those who play with fire on the Taiwanese issue will surely burn themselves to death (玩火者必自焚).”

Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang gave a keynote speech at the opening ceremony of the Lanting Forum held in Shanghai, China on April 21, warning against President Yoon Seok-yeol’s remarks against changing the status quo in the Taiwan Strait by force. Derived from the Chinese ancient history book ‘Chunchujwajeon’, this ancient idiom has the meaning of ‘trying to harm others with reckless things and being harmed yourself’.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin also criticized President Yun’s remarks on April 20, saying, “We do not allow others to interfere with what they say.” It is an ancient idiom derived from a short story of ‘Three Lives’ in ‘Yao Jae Zhi Yi’, a collection of stories written by Po Songling, a writer in the Qing Dynasty. It was taken from the sentence “I did not tolerate interfering with words and beheaded immediately (不容置喙, 立斬之)”. Hue (喙) here means the snout of the beast. ‘Don’t interfere’ is not a simple warning, but more like a threat to ‘shut up if you don’t want your throat cut off’. In an interview with Reuters on April 19, President Yoon said about the tension in the Taiwan Strait, “We, along with the international community, absolutely oppose changing the status quo by force.”

Since Chinese President Xi Jinping was elected for the third time at the National People’s Congress, which is equivalent to the National Assembly, the Chinese government has been aggressively using the so-called ‘Warcraft Diplomacy’ tactic. The term ‘war diplomacy’ is derived from the Chinese ‘Gukppong’ movie ‘Special Forces War 1·2’. Gukppong is a compound word of ‘country’ and ‘heropong’, which means nationalism or chauvinism (fanatic patriotism). The Battle Series is a film depicting the activities of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Special Forces in 2015 and 2017, literally the Chinese version of the ‘Rambo’ series. In the first part of this film, like Rambo, the main character from the Chinese special forces defeats the villains from the US Navy SEAL. The second part also tells the story of a protagonist from the Chinese special forces fighting against American mercenaries in Africa during the civil war and rescuing Chinese and refugees who are on the verge of massacre. War diplomacy refers to a tactic in which a wolf-like warrior pursues offensive diplomacy, such as force and retaliation, based on economic and military power.

Full-scale diplomacy began in earnest after Xi took power in 2013. President Xi scrapped Deng Xiaoping’s “Tao Guang Yang Hui” (? 光? 晦: wait for the right time to develop capabilities) line of China’s reform and opening-up chief designer, and actively pursued the line of “Rising the Great Nation” (大國堀起: Standing tall as a great country). has been promoting He also presented a grand blueprint to spur the strengthening of military and economic power to become a superpower by 2049, the 100th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China, under the banner of the Chinese dream of “the great revival of the Chinese nation.” President Xi has emphasized that “there is no need to learn the system of Western liberal democracy.”

The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs has been responding without hesitation to the offensive of Western countries, including the United States, since the 2020 Corona 19 incident. The Diplomat, an American diplomatic magazine, analyzed that “China, which had pursued conservative, passive, and low-profile diplomacy in the past, has been implementing a decisive, proactive, and high-stakes all-out diplomatic tactic against the international community since the COVID-19 crisis.” In particular, it is showing a position that it can never yield on issues of Taiwan, Hong Kong, Tibet, Xinjiang Weiwu’er (Uyghur), and the South China Sea, which have been defined as core interests after President Xi’s three consecutive terms. President Xi and the Central Committee of the Communist Party have instructed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to express strong opinions and take a tough stance on international issues in order to safeguard national interests. In response, ambassadors and diplomats in each country, including the Minister of Foreign Affairs, are actively taking the lead in battlefield diplomacy.

In an interview with France’s TF1 broadcaster on April 21, Lu Saye, the Chinese ambassador to France, said, “The countries that emerged after the collapse of the Soviet Union do not have an effective status under international law because there was no international agreement specifying the status of a sovereign state.” It raised questions about the sovereignty of independent countries. Ambassador Lu’s remarks were aimed at the three Baltic countries, including Lithuania, which have withdrawn from the ’17+1 (CEEC)’, an economic cooperation between China and Central and Eastern Europe, and are strengthening cooperation with Taiwan. The three Baltic countries and Central and Eastern European countries were outraged by this and summoned the Chinese ambassadors to their countries and strongly protested. Ambassador Lu claimed that they were “incited by foreign forces” in connection with the blank demonstrations held against the Chinese government’s zero-corona quarantine measures in December of last year, and that Taiwanese people who support independence were “brainwashed and can be re-educated.” said.

On April 14, Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Shilian Huang said, “If the Philippines considers the 150,000 workers in Taiwan, it is better to clearly oppose Taiwan independence.” Ambassador Hwang’s remarks can be seen as a kind of threat that the Filipino people could be harmed if they do not support China. He did not hide his uncomfortable feelings, such as strongly criticizing the Philippines for granting the United States the right to use four additional military bases.

China’s representative ‘wolf warrior’ is Foreign Minister Qin Gang, who was appointed to succeed Wang Yi in December last year. He earned this nickname for his outspoken statements that strongly expressed his country’s position when he served as a spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs from 2005 to 2010 and from 2011 to 2014. Even after taking office as the Chinese ambassador to the United States in July 2021, he did not hesitate to use strong language, such as warning of the possibility of an armed conflict between the United States and China.

At a press conference held at the Beijing Media Center on March 7, when asked about the relationship between China’s wartime diplomacy and his appointment as foreign minister, Qin said, “China’s diplomacy is done with enough generosity and goodwill, but a tiger blocks the way and starves.” When wolves attack, Chinese diplomats must dance with wolves to defend the country,” he stressed. Borrowing from the American movie ‘Dances with Wolves’, it revealed its intention to respond rather than avoid if the US attacks or provokes China. On April 14, Chin also engaged in a fierce battle of words with German Foreign Minister Annalena Verbock. When Minister Verbock criticized China’s violent protests against Taiwan and human rights abuses against the Uyghurs, he said, “China will not use the old path of Western colonialism.” I don’t,” he replied.

Taiwan is confronting China’s war diplomacy with war cat diplomacy. Jeonmyo diplomacy refers to Taiwan’s diplomatic tactics to increase its allies in the international community by putting the values ​​of democracy, freedom, peace, and respect for human rights at the forefront. In July 2020, Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen appointed Xiao Mei-qin as Taiwan’s representative to the US, introducing him as “having the qualities of a flexible ‘cat warrior’.” Xiao said, “Taiwan diplomacy is like a cat walking lightly and flexibly on a tight rope,” and has stressed that “it is different from China’s arrogant and rude diplomacy.”

Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen (left) is escorted by U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (center) to the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library on April 5 (local time). [AP]

Representative Xiao is receiving considerable support from the political circles in Washington, the United States, by advocating omnipotence diplomacy. The New York Times of the United States emphasized that Mr. Xiao has been building friendships by exchanging with major US lawmakers and former and current officials, regardless of Republican or Democratic Party. Representative Xiao set a record as the first Taiwan representative to attend the inauguration ceremony of the US president since the US and Taiwan’s severance of relations in January 2021. He also orchestrated a visit to Taiwan by then-US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in August of last year.

At the time, the angry Chinese government imposed a ‘permanent sanction’ on him. When President Tsai visited Los Angeles on April 5 and met with Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy, the Chinese government strongly protested and placed him on permanent sanctions list once again. Born to a Taiwanese father and an American mother, CEO Xiao graduated from Montclair High School and Oberlin University in the United States, and obtained a master’s degree in political science from Columbia University. He also served as an English interpreter for former Taiwanese President Chen Shui-bian, and served as a member of the Legislative Council and the National Security Council of the Ministry of the Interior. Like a typical cat warrior, he raises four cats.

The Taiwanese government is strengthening solidarity and exchange by inviting a large number of members and influential figures from each country. Delegates from the U.S. Congress, which have severed diplomatic ties with Taiwan, as well as members of Asian countries such as Europe, Japan, and Korea, are visiting Taiwan from time to time despite China’s obstruction. Maggie Lewis, a professor at Seton Hall University in the U.S., said, “Foreshadowing diplomacy emphasizes flexibility and agility in the face of powerful forces.” Taiwan’s diplomatic ties are shrinking because of China’s large-scale funding. However, Taiwan’s cat warriors are not giving in and are active in the international community, gaining favor over Chinese wolf warriors.

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Weekly Donga

Published in issue 1388

Janghoon Lee International Affairs Analyst truth21c@empas.com

Source: Donga

Mark

Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.