MEDIA REACTION: U.S.-CHINA-TAIWAN RELATIONS

UNCLAS AIT TAIPEI 001254 SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR INR/R/MR, EAP/TC, EAP/P, EAP/PD - THOMAS HAMM DEPARTMENT PASS AIT/WASHINGTON E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: OPRC KMDR KPAO TW SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION: U.S.-CHINA-TAIWAN RELATIONS Summary: Taiwan's major Chinese-language dailies focused news coverage October 22 on the developments in cross-Strait relations, on local political issues, and on the complaints over some "odd" training approaches adopted at a local cram school. In terms of editorials and commentaries, an editorial in the conservative, pro-unification, English-language "China Post" discussed what the paper believes to be Taiwan's "poorly equipped" and "poorly disciplined" air force. The article said that, given the lack of discipline in Taiwan's air force, the Ministry of National Defense had better "cancel any purchase of advanced fighter-interceptors from the United States to alleviate the drain on the national coffers." An op-ed in the KMT-leaning, China-focused "Want Daily" discussed the possibility of a peace agreement across the Taiwan Strait. The article said, judging from what the Ma Ying-jeou administration has been saying lately, Ma is not really interested in negotiating a peace agreement with Beijing. End summary. A) "Poorly Equipped Air Force Is Equally Poorly Disciplined" The conservative, pro-unification, English-language "China Post" [circulation: 30,000] editorialized (10/22): "... As a matter of fact, any poorly disciplined air force, or any fighting force for that matter, can't fight. Taiwan's air force is already no match for its opposite number in the People's Liberation Army. We used to have air superiority over the Taiwan Strait. We have long since lost it, for we are not adequately armed and equipped. Time was when our fighters shot down all MiG fighters of the PLA air force before, during and after the Quemoy Crisis of August 23, 1958. And we never lost a plane! Well, that's the reason why Taiwan has been trying to buy F16-D fighters from the United States. The Pentagon has hesitated to sell the highly sophisticated warplanes to us, however. "Perhaps for good reason. The U.S. top brass must have known our poorly equipped air force is equally poorly disciplined. In that case, whatever advanced type of fighters we have would simply end up a mass of scrap iron when hostilities break out between the two sides of the Strait. Of course, no war is likely between Taiwan and China. One thing the Ministry of National Defense should do is to cancel any purchase of advanced fighter-interceptors from the United 
States to alleviate the drain on the national coffers. Taiwan is in a dire financial strait. We cannot afford expensive warplanes which are most likely to stay on the ground in time of war." B) "Ma Ying-jeou Says No to a [Cross-Strait] Peace Pact?" Professor Chang Ya-chung from National Taiwan University's Department of Political Science opined in the KMT-leaning, China-focused "Want Daily" [circulation: 10,000] (10/22): "Establishing mutual trust are the words that [Chinese President] Hu Jintao has constantly talked about over the past year, and they are listed at the top of his 16-character guideline on cross-Strait relations. All these showed the significance of these words to Beijing. Politically speaking, 'establishing mutual trust' includes two main issues: namely, a peace accord and a military confidence-building mechanism. One day prior to [President] Ma Ying-jeou's doubling as the KMT chairman, Chao Chun-shan, Chairman of the Foundation on Asia-Pacific Peace Studies, a peripheral organization of the National Security Council, clearly indicated that Taiwan must complete 'three preparations' before it engages in political dialogue with mainland China. Such remarks can be viewed as a clear statement from the [Taiwan] government, telling Beijing that currently there is no chance for political dialogue [across the Taiwan Strait]. ... "The 'three preparations' remark indicates that Ma has again stated his position [on cross-Strait relations], except that two more preconditions have been added -- namely, 'reaching an internal consensus [in Taiwan] (including 'not ruling out [the possibility of] launching a referendum [on cross-Strait political talks]),and winning acceptance [of the political talks] by the international community. Such a message was akin to clearly telling Beijing that now is the time to put on hold for the time being the calls for peace negotiations! Given this, the public should be able to more accurately interpret Ma's current mainland policy, namely, 'economics only, and no politics.' "The move to hand over the prerequisites for a cross-Strait peace agreement and a military confidence-building mechanism to the [Taiwan] people and the United States is clearly another way of saying 'No' [to Beijing]. ... If the Republic of China is a nation, a [true] entity, how can it possibly put the interests of the United States and Japan as a prerequisite [for cross-Strait relations]? [Actually,] in Ma's mind, the principal [priority] is 'arms procurement, the United States, and [winning the] elections;' the so-called cross-Strait peace pact is nothing but lip service. Here we have to ask, with only trade and economic exchanges and no peace accord, will it be possible to resolve the core problems between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait? Will it really meet Taiwan's interests if [we] simply dodge sensitive issues? We are concerned that time is not necessarily on Taiwan's side. How many bargaining chips will we be able to have while waiting to be forced into talks for a peace agreement?" STANTON