New trends in the cross-Strait relations between China and Taiwan

Although the political relation between the People’s Republic of China and the Republic of China on Taiwan has been stagnating in recent years, the bilateral trade and exchange between the two sides are booming rather swiftly. Beijing has changed its policy from using force against Taiwan even without independence in the year 2000 to only using force against independence in 2005. It indicates the maintenance of the status quo, the tolerance of the ROC legal structure, and peaceful coexistence only if Taiwan did not cross the Rubicon. While the opposition tries to reconcile with Beijing, the government keeps on its policy of confrontation. But still, Beijing has been trying hard to collaborate with the USA on the Taiwan issue, while offering increasing amount of friendly measures toward the Taiwanese people. Due to tremendous domestic and international pressure to the government in Taipei, its rapprochement to the Mainland is more and more likely to take place in the near future.We can set the Cornell visit of the former President Lee Teng-hui in summer 1995 as the start of the current stagnation of the cross-Strait relations because it triggered the PLA’s military manoeuvre in the Taiwan Strait. Since then, except for a short period of rapprochement in autumn 1998, the bilateral relations have never been improved. See: Tang 2002; ; ; .

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Shaocheng TangEmail: