Taiwan Tati Cultural and Educational Foundation

It is good that former US president Bill Clinton had an opportunity to visit Taiwan. The democratic nation’s political isolation has led to the peculiar phenomenon that only future and past US presidents — and secretaries of state or defense for that matter — can visit it.

But the matter raises an important question: Why can’t a current US president visit? The obvious reason is, of course, that China would strenuously object. Still, if our purpose is to support democracy in East Asia, it behooves the US to move toward normalization of relations with Taiwan.

In its annual report released yesterday, the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission made a series of recommendations aimed at boosting the Washington-Taipei relationship and pushing the administration of US President Barack Obama to take stronger action on trade issues with China.

The commission recommends that the US Congress direct the Pentagon to “address the issue” of Taiwan’s air defense capabilities, to include a detailed assessment of Taiwan’s needs vis-a-vis China’s growing military air and missile capabilities.