A series of events over the past few days and weeks has caused the Taiwan-US-China relationship to become increasingly fraught. As tensions rise to the boiling point, the Taiwan Strait and South China Sea have become a dangerous tinderbox.

The temperature must be ratcheted down to alleviate the risk of a miscalculation mushrooming into a major conflict.

From left, Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu, American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) Director Brent Christensen and National Communictions Commission Chairman Chen Yaw-shyang hold signed copies of a joint declaration on 5G security at the 5G Policy Forum organized by the AIT yesterday in Taipei.
Photo: Peter Lo, Taipei Times

The US is working with Taiwan to restructure global supply chains under the shared values of transparency and accountability, American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) Director Brent Christensen said, according to a transcript released by AIT yesterday.

The commonalities are there: A former US vice president who served two terms under an iconic president has been out of office during a successive administration of the opposite party, earlier made an unsuccessful bid for the US presidency and then runs against either the incumbent president or vice president.

He seeks to use his age and longevity in public life to his advantage, claiming wisdom from experience, primarily in the area of international relations and national security. To establish his gravitas, he turns to the pages of Foreign Affairs to lay out his foreign policy vision.