President Ma Ying-jeou met on the afternoon of October 7 with a delegation from the US Hudson Institute, a non-profit think tank. In addition to describing the three lines of defense for Taiwan's security, the president also expressed hope that Taiwan and the United States will continue to deepen cooperation and interaction in military, security, and trade relations.
In remarks, President Ma stated that this is the first time that the Hudson Institute has sent a delegation to Taiwan. The members of the delegation included former senior officials from the US Department of Defense and high-ranking, retired military personnel with many years of experience. These individuals, he said, have backgrounds in the naval, air, submarine, and special warfare theaters, all of which are important to Taiwan's defense and security.
President Ma stated that mainland China's defense budget each year rises by nearly 10% and sometimes 20%, so how Taiwan formulates a national defense strategy is extremely important, which is why the president briefed his visitors on Taiwan's three lines of defense and how they have benefitted the nation.
The first line of defense is the institutionalization of cross-strait rapprochement, the president said. He commented that he has strived to improve cross-strait relations since taking office in 2008, and these efforts have led to clear changes in ties between the two sides, which have been under separate rule for 65 years. The Taiwan Strait, remarked the president, has turned from a potential "flash point" into an "avenue of peace." Last year, bilateral trade reached US$163.6 billion, he noted, adding that people on the two sides made over eight million cross-strait visits, an indication of close ties. Institutionalization of cross-strait rapprochement has helped to reduce the threat of military conflict, said the president, because any unilateral change to the status quo would now have an enormous impact on cross-strait relations.
The second line of defense is an increased contribution by Taiwan to international development, President Ma said. He stated that Taiwan actively seeks to play the roles of a peacemaker, a provider of humanitarian aid, a promoter of cultural ties, a creator of new technologies and business opportunities, and a standard-bearer of Chinese culture. Taiwan, the president remarked, hopes to be an asset to the international community. He cited an example, remarking that while the ROC has formal diplomatic relations with only 22 nations, it has established representative offices in over 50 countries. In addition, 140 jurisdictions provide ROC nationals with visa-free courtesies or landing visas, which proves that the international community recognizes the efforts made by Taiwan.
The third line of defense, said President Ma, is the military. He explained that the ROC military has adopted a strategic principle of "resolute defense and effective deterrence." The military here has adopted "asymmetrical" and "innovative" ways of thinking in order to reduce the possibility of military conflict, the president stated. In addition, President Ma remarked, the government began promoting a volunteer army system last year with the hope of creating a military force that, while small, is also strong, specialized, and skillful. The president emphasized that even though improved cross-strait relations have reduced hostility and increased mutual trust, this does not mean that all problems have been solved. In fact, he said, the two sides still have quite a few differences, especially in the area of international relations, where Taiwan still faces many obstacles and is unable to participate in a meaningful way in international organizations and activities.
President Ma stressed that there was once a vicious cycle between cross-strait ties, on the one hand, and Taiwan's relations with the international community, on the other, but the government has been working to transform it into a virtuous cycle. Where the two aspects once exacerbated each other, the idea is to make them complement each other. The president said that since he took office in 2008, Taiwan has been invited to attend the World Health Assembly and the Assembly of the International Civil Aviation Organization, and the frequency of its participation in a wide range of international activities has increased. This represents a concrete example of how the government is successfully improving cross-strait relations and international relations at the same time, he commented.
As for the US strategy of rebalancing toward Asia, President Ma stated, Taiwan is actively playing the role of regional peacemaker. The president specifically mentioned his East China Sea Peace Initiative, which is based on the principle that although sovereignty over national territory cannot be compromised, natural resources can be shared. In addition, Taiwan and Japan signed a fisheries agreement, using peaceful means to end a 40-year fishing dispute in the waters around the Diaoyutai Islets, he said. The international community praised this success, he stated. The president also briefed his guests on the Guang Da Xing No. 28 fishing boat incident, in which a Philippine Coast Guard vessel fired on a Taiwanese fishing boat in overlapping economic waters, damaging the boat and killing a fisherman. President Ma said that after three months of negotiations, the Philippines issued a formal apology, provided compensation, and pledged to punish those responsible. Moreover, the two sides subsequently reached a consensus on how to handle law enforcement actions at sea. This, he said, is conducive to peace in the South China Sea.
The president then discussed the achievements associated with cooperation between Taiwan and the United States in the military and security spheres. He stated that in order to ensure the safety and defense of Taiwan, the ROC continues to acquire military hardware from the United States that it is unable to manufacture on its own in order to replace outdated equipment. Over the past six years, Taiwan has purchased US$18.3 billion of military hardware from the United States, including F-16 A/B series fighter jets upgrade packets, 12 P-3C anti-submarine aircraft and 30 Apache helicopters, which, the president said, are quite significant in updating Taiwan's combat readiness.
President Ma commented that Taiwan's relationships with the United States, Japan, mainland China, ASEAN nations, and the European Union are at their closest state in the past 60 years, and that maintaining this status is quite important to Taiwan and nearby areas. The president concluded his remarks by saying that the government will continue working to maintain regional peace, and will do its best to provide assistance to countries in need.
The delegation was led by Dr. Seth Cropsey, director of the Center for American Seapower at the Hudson Institute.