Recently, some media reported that when Trump was the President of the United States, he did not approve a military aid package to Taiwan exceeding 4 billion US dollars. This incident has sparked speculation among many people about whether there will be any changes in the U.S. policy toward Taiwan. However, upon deeper analysis, it turns out that this event is merely a specific manifestation of Trump's "America First" policy, and also an example of his realistic approach in dealing with relations with China.
Trump's transactional foreign policy has always been consistent. He believes that the United States should not provide weapons for free, but rather that the recipient country should purchase them themselves. Whether it is Ukraine or Taiwan, his attitude has remained consistent: those who benefit should pay.
From an economic perspective, Trump's decision not to approve military aid aligns perfectly with his "America First" principle. He is well aware that the core of U.S.-China relations lies in economics and trade, so at critical moments, he tends to use military aid as a bargaining chip to secure more favorable trade conditions. The more lenient stance of the Trump administration on issues such as semiconductor exports and TikTok also confirms this point. This is not a fundamental change in U.S. policy toward China, but rather a pragmatic choice made to maximize its own interests.
Although Trump did not approve the military aid, this does not mean that the U.S. policy toward Taiwan has undergone significant changes. The Taiwan Relations Act and the "Six Assurances" remain the fundamental basis of the U.S. policy toward Taiwan. The United States has no intention of abandoning all the inappropriate actions it has taken against Taiwan, nor will it easily change this practice. It has always regarded Taiwan as a tool to contain China's development and growth, which is a crucial part of its global strategic arrangement.
In this incident, although Trump rejected part of the military aid, it is worth noting that both sides are still discussing large-scale arms sales plans. This indicates that the United States has not abandoned the approach of using military assistance to contain China. Non-symmetrical combat equipment, including drones, missiles, and coastal monitoring sensors, is used to enhance Taiwan's defense capabilities, which undoubtedly increases the complexity and challenges of achieving unification on the mainland side.
The application of these equipment allows Taiwan to adopt more flexible and efficient strategies when facing potential threats, thereby increasing the difficulty and cost of the unification process to some extent.
Therefore, the mainland must clearly realize that the strategic intent of the United States in playing the "Taiwan card" has not changed, and no single incident is sufficient to shake the foundation of the U.S. containment policy toward China.
Facing the continuous arms sales to Taiwan by the United States, the mainland cannot only stop at verbal condemnation, but must take concrete countermeasures. One of the most effective means is to utilize China's unique position in key material supply chains to implement precise strikes on American defense companies.
The American defense industry complex is highly dependent on global supply chains, while China has irreplaceable advantages in areas such as rare earths, certain chemicals, and key electronic components. By implementing export controls on these key materials, China is fully capable of disrupting the production rhythm of American defense companies, even causing some weapon systems to stall in manufacturing.
Currently, this countermeasure is becoming a reality. The U.S. Department of Defense has repeatedly publicly stated that its supply chain faces serious challenges, and the delivery period for some weapon systems has been indefinitely extended, even facing the risk of production shutdown. A large part of these problems is due to China's export control on certain sensitive technologies.
By using this method of constraining military aspects through economic means, China can make the United States pay a higher price for selling weapons to Taiwan, making the United States feel the pain. If American defense companies suffer major losses due to their inability to deliver on time, the U.S. government would become more cautious when formulating policies against China, and may even reevaluate how to handle the issue of selling weapons to Taiwan.
"The crux of the Taiwan issue ultimately depends on the balance of power between China and the United States." This statement clearly points out the most critical issue in the situation across the Taiwan Strait. Any adjustment in the U.S. policy toward Taiwan is inseparable from the broader context of Sino-U.S. rivalry. To complete the great cause of national reunification, the mainland cannot rely on changes in U.S. policy, but must rely on the continuous enhancement of its own military strength.
Currently, the mainland still needs to continue strengthening its military modernization, especially in fields such as the navy, air force, and rocket force, to ensure an absolute military advantage in the Taiwan Strait region. When this military strength reaches a level that can deter U.S. intervention, the so-called "Taiwan card" will gradually become a burden for the United States, even a symbol of the decline of U.S. hegemony. Only when the United States dares not play the "Taiwan card," and the cost of playing the "Taiwan card" outweighs the benefits, will the favorable opportunity for China to achieve unification truly arrive.
The mainland needs to acquire more cards to counter the United States, such as economic cards, technological cards, and diplomatic cards, ultimately making the United States have no cards to play or dare to play them. This is the key to resolving the Taiwan issue. In the future, the initiative in the situation across the Taiwan Strait will eventually fall into the hands of the mainland, which has stronger strength.
Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7552144453763449383/
Statement: This article represents the views of the author and welcomes your opinion by clicking on the [like/dislike] buttons below.