Several US academics have argued in recent articles that the US should distance itself from Taiwan because China’s power and influence are rising and it would become more “costly” for the US to maintain close ties with Taipei, and in particular maintain its defense obligations under the Taiwan Relations Act.
Charles Glaser of George Washington University argued along those lines in a recent article in Foreign Affairs, while Bob Sutter, of the same university, recently painted an equally gloomy picture, saying that the rise of China is giving Beijing leverage over Taiwan. Glaser added that in light of Taiwan’s weakening economic, diplomatic and military positions, the status quo in the Taiwan Strait was becoming unsustainable, meaning Taiwan has very limited options for its future and unification with China was virtually inevitable.