Bush Administration Policy on Taiwan

Re “U.S. Tilt to Taipei Is Seen as Risky,” May 21: I do not see the logic behind Robert L. Suettinger’s (of Rand Corp.) argument that treating a duly elected leader of Taiwan, a democracy of 24 million people, with respect is risky. Do people really think that China’s behavior will change if the U.S. always says yes?

Yes, a one-China policy has served its purpose in the past 20 years. But China knows quite well that America’s one-China policy is not a principle. It can be and will be reformulated according to the new reality: Taiwan is a vibrant democracy, and the reunification with China is not the only option for people in Taiwan.

Washington should politely tell Beijing to grow up and to stop forcing others to accept its false claim that Taiwan is its renegade province. The U.S. should conduct a foreign policy that advances the U.S. national interest and values, and doesn’t just cater to orders from Communist China. President Bush’s current approaches to China--firm and resolved--seem to be working.

Wencheng Lin

Hacienda Heights

Bush’s policy tilt, as reported by The Times, has most people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait concerned. As Suettinger said, flaunting relations with Taiwan and rubbing China’s nose in it won’t help either U.S.-China relations or cross-strait relations between China and Taiwan.

Based on Donald H. Rumsfeld’s defense review, the Bush administration seems determined to pursue a policy of containment instead of engagement. Most recently, the U.S. is even warming up to India and Russia so as to complete a tight rope around China’s neck. One must wonder what Bush is trying to accomplish--peace and stability in Asia? Does his policy tilt serve America’s vital national interest by weakening China or even dividing China?

Jack Liu

Woodland Hills