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TAEF BRIEF
July 29, 2022
No. 93 |
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CONTENT
-TAEF Updates
-TAEF Commentaries
-New Southbound Policy News
-Regional Headlines |
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Researchers from BRIN, Indonesia's Largest Research Center, Visits TAEF |
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July 8, 2022
On July 8, TAEF was honored to welcome Rita Pawestri Setyaningsih, the head of research collaboration section of the Research Center for Area Studies (PRW) of the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) in Indonesia, and Yuherina Gusman, lecturer of Al Azhar University as well as a current Ph.D. student in Asia Pacific Studies of the National Chengchi University. We were also joined by their colleague, Paulus Rudolf Yuniarto, through an online webinar.
We exchanged ideas on how to connect our resources and networks to achieve common goals with the New Southbound Policy serving as a good starting point.
In her remarks, Ms. Rita highlighted that their primary work under the Research Center for Area Studies (PRW) of BRIN is to lead international knowledge production in Indonesia, particularly focusing on Asia Pacific, Europe, and Africa – and Taiwan has just been added to the list under the Asia Pacific.
As PRW focuses on diaspora and international migrant issues, Dr. Alan Yang, the Executive Director of TAEF, suggested BRIN establish a research unit in Taiwan to tap into the vibrant Indonesian community here. Furthermore, he stressed that institutional setup plays a crucial role in promoting bilateral exchange.
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TAEF x NIA: The New Southbound and New Immigrants Policies Forum 2022 |
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July 7, 2022
According to the National Immigration Agency (NIA) of the Ministry of the Interior, as of January 2022, there are more than 160 thousand new immigrants from Southeast Asia living in Taiwan. Simultaneously, the government is paying more attention to this community putting down roots in Taiwan, where multifaceted care measures have been rolled out and expanded their implementation from the local governments to the central government with inter-departmental coordination and resource consolidation.
Against this background, Taiwan-Asia Exchange Foundation (TAEF) joined hands with the NIA in organizing The New Southbound and New Immigrants Policies Forum on July 7. Government representatives, experts, scholars, and new immigrant representatives were invited to exchange wisdom on three main topics, namely the Native Language Education and Applications of New Immigrants’ Children, Public Participation of New Immigrants, and Empowerment of New Immigrants.
In his welcoming remarks, Chairman Michael Hsin-Huang Hsiao of TAEF said that the forum embodies the spirit of two “new” and five “Ms.” The first “new” refers to the New Southbound Policy, which has been expanded into five flagship programs and five action plans throughout the years; The second “new” represents the new immigrants, who have significantly added momentum to public-private partnerships in Taiwan. Meanwhile, the five Ms refer to Make Money、Make Jobs、Make friends、Make family, and, most importantly, Make Values, respectively.
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India Today
China Has More to Lose if Pelosi Visits Taiwan |
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July 29, 2022
-Dr. Sana Hashmi, Visiting Fellow, Taiwan-Asia Exchange Foundation
On July 28, Chinese President Xi Jinping and United States President Joe Biden spoke on a phone call that lasted for over two hours. Xi and Biden have not met in an in-person summit yet, but this was the fifth call between the two leaders since Biden assumed the presidency in January 2021.
The call is significant for a number of reasons, but both sides have different reasons to keep lines of communication open.
Maintaining regular exchanges with the United States is more important for China at the moment. Taiwan has been a major factor in China-United States ties and was discussed extensively during this call as well. On Taiwan, the Chinese readout was full of the usual rhetoric and threatening tone, “Those who play with fire will perish by it. It is hoped that the United States will be clear-eyed about this. The United States should honour the one-China principle and implement the three joint communiqués, both in word and in deed.”
The timing of the call is noteworthy as it took place within a few days of the leak of the news of the potential visit of Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the US House of Representatives, to Taiwan in August.
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Asian Politics and Policy
The Case for Smart Diplomacy: Evidence from Taiwan's New Southbound Policy |
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July 18, 2022
-Adnan Rasool, Department of Accounting, Finance, Economics and Political Science, The University of Tennessee
-Casey Ruggiero, Department of Accounting, Finance, Economics and Political Science, The University of Tennessee
Taiwan, through the New Southbound Policy (NSP), is engaging in smart diplomacy within its region, that is, South Asia, Southeast Asia, and Oceania. By focusing on promoting non-state-level contact, business‐to‐business and people‐to‐people, and economic collaboration, Taiwan is choosing to engage the region in niche areas like agriculture, health sciences, industrial talent development, industrial innovation, and civil society interactions. The NSP is a framework that leans on Taiwan's inherent strengths and dedicates resources in a targeted manner alternative to the traditional diplomacy approach—seeking diplomatic acceptance and recognition—that had long been the mainstay of Taiwan's foreign policy.
The trade volumes between Taiwan and NSP countries have seen growth over the last few years, especially before the pandemic hit. The policy has even had an overall positive impact on Taiwan's relationship with its traditional allies like the United States because of NSP's low‐profile and pragmatic approach to diplomacy.
Ultimately, we can see that smart diplomacy in one shape, or another has existed as a rational foreign policy choice for small states. In this article, Taiwan's case was chosen to highlight that the concept of smart diplomacy can operate even under complicated and multifaceted diplomatic situations.
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Conversation Six
Sana's ConvoSix on Wang Yi' Southeast Asia Visit |
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July 15, 2022
-Dr. Sana Hashmi, Visiting Fellow, Taiwan-Asia Exchange Foundation
China's foreign minister Wang Yi just concluded his official visit to five Southeast Asian countries from July 3 to 14. He visited Myanmar, Thailand, the Philippines, Indonesia, and Malaysia. One of the primary objectives for him to be in Southeast Asia was to attend the G-20 foreign ministers meeting in Bali.
But apart from that, Wang Yi visited Southeast Asia with a clear agenda. The message was clear that China wants to reach out to Southeast Asia and he started his visit with Myanmar. It's interesting given how it was the first visit by a foreign leader or officials since the Myanmar coup took place in early 2021.
In fact, in the Chinese media, this meeting is being heralded as one of the Chinese alternatives to the US-led Indo-Pacific Economic Framework. So, Wang Yi's visit is definitely to counter the US‘ outreach to Southeast Asia and its efforts in strengthening the Indo-Pacific construct. In a way, in Southeast Asia, there is a game of announcing initiatives and then providing alternatives. But if you look at the broader picture here, it is pretty clear that China is confronted with a similar situation as what happened after Obama's Pivot to Asia or Rebalancing to Asia strategy.
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NEW SOUTHBOUND POLICY NEWS |
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Taipei Times
US Trade Partnership to Continue, Tsai Says
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July 21, 2022
In her remarks made in a prerecorded video at a business forum in Taipei organized by the Commercial Times, President Tsai Ing-wen said that the nation would continue to collaborate with the US and other countries in the Indo-Pacific region on economic and trade issues in the post-COVID-19 pandemic era.
Tsai cited as an example the Taiwan-US Initiative on 21st-Century Trade launched last month to develop concrete ways to deepen economic and trade ties.
Under the initiative, Taipei and Washington are to negotiate on 11 areas including trade facilitation, regulatory practices, agriculture, and anti-corruption measures. It was unveiled after Taiwan was excluded from the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework, a multilateral partnership led by the US and against China’s growing economic and political influence in the region.
Tsai yesterday said the government’s New Southbound Policy has since its launch in 2016 bolstered the nation’s trade and investment ties with 16 countries in Southeast and South Asia, as well as Australia and New Zealand. Taiwan’s trade with policy partners reached a record US$149 billion last month, showing that trade ties had not been heavily affected by the pandemic.
Taiwan has signed new versions of bilateral investment agreements with the Philippines, Vietnam, and India to provide better protection for Taiwanese investors there, she said. The government would continue to help Taiwanese firms operating in policy countries cultivate talent and implement industrial upgrade to boost and safeguard their investments in the region.
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Focus Taiwan
New Southbound Policy Reflects US Indo-Pacific Strategy: Vice Premier
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July 20, 2022
The New Southbound Policy (NSP) reflects Washington's Indo-Pacific Strategy and the shared values of Taiwan and its allies in the region, Vice Premier Shen Jong-chin told a forum in Taipei on July 20, adding that a recent slew of similar policies introduced by other countries highlights the importance of engaging in exchanges with ASEAN member states.
The forum, held by the Chinese-language Commercial Times, reviewed the performance of the top 1,000 Taiwanese businesses in the bloc.
The NSP, introduced by the ruling Democratic Progressive Party in 2016, seeks to engage in commercial, technological, cultural and educational exchanges with 18 countries, including ASEAN member states, South Asian countries, Australia and New Zealand, thereby pooling resources, fostering talent and boosting prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region, Shen said.
Meanwhile, South Korea's New Southern Policy, India's Look East Policy, and the EU's Strategy for Cooperation in the Indo-Pacific show that these countries acknowledge the importance of building rapport with ASEAN member states to promote cooperation, he said.
Read more
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Taipei Times
Abe’s Death and Lessons for Taiwan
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July 17, 2022
Not only was he well-known as the founding father of the Indo-Pacific strategy and the architect of the first Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) between the US, Japan, Australia and India, former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe has also been hailed by democracies worldwide for his leading role in the global anti-China campaign, notably through his strong support for Taiwan’s expansion of its diplomatic outreach.
Amid the resurgence of ethnonationalism and authoritarian advances, the loss of a strong democratic supporter and practitioner such as Abe is truly a major loss for Taiwan.
Abe invested tremendous intellectual and practical effort to supporting Taiwan. When the COVID-19 pandemic was at its most severe, he expedited donations of “friendship vaccines” to help Taiwan when supplies were tight. He also stood out as an advocate of Taiwan’s full international participation. When security concerns in the Taiwan Strait mounted, Abe worked tirelessly with like-minded powers in the Quad to tout the strategic importance of defending the nation against Beijing’s aggression.
Peace-loving people in Taiwan might know Abe’s astute advice, but what should they do?
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Ketagalan Media
Taiwan’s Soft Power in Southeast Asia Needs a New Thrust
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June 29, 2022
Under the New Southbound Policy (NSP), a key plank in Taiwan’s national development strategy launched in 2016, the Tsai Ing-wen administration has sought to strengthen Taiwan’s engagement with both traditional and promising partner nations. To do so, the Taiwanese government has embraced soft power as an effective foreign policy tool to enhance Taiwan’s beneficial ties with countries targeted by the initiative.
To foster its soft power in Southeast Asia, the Tsai government needs an upgrade of the NSP, with which Taiwanese enterprises, students, and civilians should be encouraged to have a better understanding of the cultural landscape, business environment, and languages of targeted Southeast Asian nations. Each country in the 655-million region has its unique characteristics, with its own languages, customs, and business habits, which cannot (and should not) be generalized.
Additionally, the Tsai administration should link popular culture, beautiful landscape, historical values, local cuisine, and product brands of Taiwan with its businesses to enhance the overall image of the nation. Economic benefits are important for any nation; however, sustainable values should be prioritized and be based on comprehensive engagement and clear-cut orientation for sustainable cooperation.
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The Diplomat
Myanmar Junta Executes Four Political Prisoners, Courting Further Isolation
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July 25
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Myanmar’s military government has followed through on its plan to execute four political prisoners, including a former lawmaker from the ousted civilian government, which it accused of carrying out “terror acts.”
The four were among around 114 people who have been sentenced to death by military tribunals since the coup for opposing the military junta. While the military has historically carried out very few of the death sentences that it has imposed, the junta announced last month that the group’s appeals had been rejected and that it planned to carry out the executions.
The killings prompted an immediate outcry. A spokesperson for the opposition National Unity Government said that it was “extremely shocked & saddened” to hear of the executions, and said that the world “must punish murderous #Myanmar military junta for their cruelty and killings.”
As some observers noted, the decision is also a slap in the face of current Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) chair Cambodia and its prime minister, Hun Sen, who urged the military not to carry out the planned executions. In a letter to Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing last month, Hun Sen suggested that the move would further isolate the junta and throw up further obstacles to the restoration of peace – both of which are no doubt true.
Read more
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The Diplomat
Is Pakistan the Next Sri Lanka?
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July 23, 2022
Hambantota in southern Sri Lanka housed ousted President Gotabaya Rajapaksa following the recent crisis until he was forced to flee the country entirely. That continues a trend of the city, and especially its strategic deep-sea port, being in the news for all the wrong reasons.
In 2017, when Sri Lanka found itself struggling to make debt repayments on time, it sold a 99-year lease of the port to the Chinese company that had constructed it for some quick cash. Many analysts and writers penned articles pointing to Hambantota as Exhibit A in the theory that China deliberately plunges developing countries into a “debt trap” by offering loans to finance extravagant infrastructure projects.
Similarly, many analysts and writers who warned the same fate might befall Pakistan, where Chinese authorities have been heavily involved in investment projects, particularly under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) since 2015. Like Sri Lanka’s Hambantota, the Chinese have been heavily investing in Gwadar, the deep-sea port in Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province that serves as the epicenter of CPEC in Pakistan.
Today, the current political and economic situation has worsened tremendously in Sri Lanka, culminating in the country defaulting on its debt payments. Undoubtedly, Pakistan, too, has a shambling economy, now going from bad to worse in the wake of political uncertainty.
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Lowy Institute
New Government in Canberra: A Reset For Australia's Indo-Pacific Approach?
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July 13, 2022
Swings in favour of the Labor party, which won a narrow majority in parliament, and towards Green and independent candidates point to a fairly decisive electoral shift on climate.
That reset is part of a broader push for Australia to restore balance in its global relations and to invest in independent partnerships with major Indo-Pacific players. The Australian foreign policy and national security bureaucracy will be working across the AUKUS and Quad initiatives for years to come. But the challenge will be to do so while also cultivating a broader, distinctively Australian approach to the Indo-Pacific region outside the US alliance framework.
The central challenge in Australian foreign policy is the need to square the circle between two objectives: building a strategic counterweight to China with like-minded partners on the one hand and, on the other, co-operating with a more geopolitically diverse set of countries in shoring up the regional order.
The foreign minister has spoken of the need for Australia to achieve a “strategic equilibrium” in the region. The term marks an interesting departure from the usual articulation of Canberra’s objective of forging an effective regional balance of power.
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