Taiwan Tati Cultural and Educational Foundation

US President Barack Obama and many US officials have said, on several occasions, that the US’ strategy of pivoting — rebalancing — in the Asia-Pacific is not aimed at China. This diplomatic language has not convinced Beijing, nor has it effectively curtailed China’s military expansionism. With China’s insatiable territorial claims in the East China Sea and the South China Sea, and in particular the land reclamation and island building in the South China Sea — aimed at establishing military bases and altering the regional military situation — the US cannot but change tack and adopt a fresh approach.

Since the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) disastrous defeat in the Jan. 16 presidential and legislative elections, the once-dominant party has been at odds with itself about whether to go down a reformative path that would transform itself into a more tolerant and Taiwan-centered party, or to shift toward deeper-blue ideology.

The KMT’s conflicting mindset is evidenced by its handling of two incidents pertaining to what is the most suitable appellation for the nation in the international arena.