Prepare for reduced diplomatic ties: expert

• By Fang Wei-li and Sam Garcia / Staff reporter, with staff writer

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Taiwan should prepare for reduced diplomatic ties with other countries amid rising Chinese pressure, a political science professor said yesterday.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Friday said it would close its representative office in Papua New Guinea following renewed demands from Port Moresby that Taipei withdraw its diplomatic mission.

Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and US President Donald Trump met in September, but the easing of tensions between the two superpowers does not seem to have positively impacted regional stability, National Cheng Kung University political science professor Wang Hung-jen (王宏仁) said, adding that Beijing has not eased its pressure on other countries.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ emblem is pictured at its entrance in Taipei in an undated photograph.

Photo: CNA

There has been pressure on Taiwan’s overseas representative offices over the past decade, with five offices asked to change their names in 2017, he said.

Taiwan’s representative offices in Fiji and South Africa were renamed and downgraded, while Lithuania’s then-prime minister Inga Ruginiene in February said that allowing an office to operate under the name “Taiwan” was a strategic mistake, Wang said.

Pakistan also recently briefly barred Taiwanese airlines from flying through its airspace, citing its “one China” policy, Wang added.

Such incidents stem from Chinese pressure and countries interpreting Beijing’s policies more broadly than necessary or citing them as a basis for their own political decisions, he said.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs responded well to Papua New Guinea’s demands, standing firm without leaving room for compromise and showing it would not be pushed around, Wang said.

The ministry took control of the initiative by closing the office, he said, adding that Papua New Guinea would experience economic losses, as Taiwan would no longer buy its natural gas.

The US has continued to support Taiwan in the international arena and has not compromised on Taiwan’s interests despite changes in its domestic politics or relationship with China, Wang said.

The trend of countries reducing ties with Taiwan would likely continue over the coming year, so the nation should assess which countries it has more strained relationships with or those that lean toward China and prepare for potential challenges, he said.

Wang identified three types of countries that might follow suit: those that have close ties with China and overinterpret the “one China” policy to curry favor with Beijing; those that maintain an ambiguous or neutral stance and are susceptible to Chinese interference; and major Western powers that China seeks to influence, such as Germany and France.

Isolated cases involving countries reducing ties with Taiwan would continue to increase, even without direct pressure from Beijing, Wang added.