China, Taiwan, and the future of geopolitics.(Asia)

Taiwan is a keystone for China to cross the Pacific and go out to the world. It is an important strategic space that affects national security and national rejuvenation and affects China's external transformational links, trade links and energy transportation links.

Taiwan is the frontline for China to contest with international anti-Chinese forces, separatist forces and terrorist forces. If Taiwan independence is allowed, there will be a domino effect, which will give excuses to other separatist forces. The consequence would be unimaginable. So China must never retreat.

Opposing Taiwan independence and safeguarding unification also affects China's international dignity, image, influence and authority. China's national rejuvenation must not be symbolised by the country's division.

--Major General Peng Guangjian, PRC Academy of Military Sciences

Prudence alone should lead policy makers in Washington, Tokyo and Taipei, among other capitals, to remain open to the possibility that geostrategic rationales are among the key drivers of PRC policy toward Taiwan ... one would be remiss in failing to think anew about why Taiwan is now sufficiently important to the PRC that Beijing justifies to itself the readying of military force. Equally important is the need to avoid a blinkered view of Beijing's stance on Taiwan as an outgrowth of a peculiar Chinese fascination with unity or an inflamed reaction to historical grievances.

--Alan Wachman, Why Taiwan?

ERROL MORRIS's fine documentary about Robert McNamara, The Fog of War, offers a number of lessons about how to deal with the challenges of geopolitics in the twenty-first century. Prominent among them is the need to be able to empathise with your opponent. As China's power has increased over the past couple of decades, there has been a good deal of empathy, in a number of ways, from the outside world. Broadly speaking, China's rise has been welcomed and considerable efforts have been made to foster it, on constructive lines. As far as possible, this should continue.