Is the attractive new-generation politician the true great-grandson of Taiwan’s controversial first president or is he a Trojan horse doing Beijing’s bidding?
The Matsu Islands appear so serene but beneath the fisherman’s houses are bunkers;across the bay,signs tell residents to be “prepared to fight”.
From the edge of one of them,a Chinese armada would first emerge over the horizon if China were to launch an amphibious assault on Taiwan.
Australia needs to start thinking more deeply about the very real prospect of a war with China – and it must appreciate that Taiwan is only one potential trigger for conflict.
The panda was believed to have a malignant brain tumour,prompting China to send a pair of experts to Taiwan earlier this month to help with his treatment.
This was a chance for a reset. But beyond the rosy rhetoric,Tuesday’s hours-long meeting entrenched differences between the two superpowers.
Joe Biden has raised a lengthy series of grievances with Xi Jinping,accusing Beijing of “coercive and increasingly aggressive” behaviour.
About 200 elite Defence Force personnel joined British and American counterparts in the US’ joint exercises that simulate conflict in the Pacific and mainland Europe.
The chief executive of Sculpture by the Sea has defended an artwork that depicts Taiwan as part of China.
All over Keelung – which suffered its first foreign attack,by the Dutch,in 1642 – the landscape has been carved up for protection.
Might an all-party tour to Taipei offend Beijing? No doubt it would,but that’s no reason to shrink from a proud demonstration of Australia’s liberal democratic values.