Taiwan Tati Cultural and Educational Foundation

“China, Taiwan: do not use ‘Taiwan.’ This area is considered, within the United Nations system, as a province of China, under the jurisdiction of the Chinese government in Beijing. In general, if it is mentioned, it should be referred to as ‘Taiwan, China.’ The expression ‘Chinese Taipei’ should only be used for the list of participants, summary records and similar documents of World Health Assemblies to which that entity is invited as an observer.”

So read a leaked WHO internal policy statement, which affirmed the denigration of Taiwan’s status at the global health body.

In a speech to a US think tank on Thursday last week, President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) declared that his “approach to the Republic of China’s [ROC] national security is already at an optimum.” By making the pursuit of closer ties with China a central pillar of that approach, Ma made a strategic bet that Beijing would reciprocate with a more cooperative cross-strait policy of its own. Now approaching three years into his presidency, it is clear that Ma’s bet has not paid off.

Ma’s pursuit of the Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA), which was finally realized last summer, was a bold move aimed at not only improving the Taiwanese economy, but also securing Taiwan’s future. While it is certain to benefit Taiwan economically in the years ahead, it has not significantly improved cross-strait stability or expanded Taipei’s broader international engagement.