‘Strategic confusion’ hurts TaiwanBy Huynh Tam Sang and Chen Kuan-tingFive thousand miles from Ukraine, an island nation with a population of 23.9 million is closely watching Russia’s devastating war in Ukraine. Russia’s colossal missteps in Ukraine are unlikely to reduce Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) determination to annex Taiwan. If Beijing launches a war against Taiwan, economic sanctions, reputational costs, military support and diplomatic boycotts would likely have a seismic effect on China’s reputation and economic strength. At the very least, Biden should not brew “strategic confusion” with confusing remarks when addressing the issue of defending or supporting Taiwan. Altogether, strategic clarity instead of strategic ambiguity should become essential, an approach the US could embrace as leverage to spearhead its Taiwan policy.
