[Fee]

China ruled Taiwan since the Ming Dynasty. In fact the Ming Dynasty fell to the Manchurians in the early 1600's. Taiwan was the last Ming stronghold to surrender to the Manchus. The Manchurians lost Taiwan to Japan after the Sino-Japanese War in 1895. After World War 2, defeated Japan returned Taiwan back to China in 1945. To begin a statement that mainland China ruled Taiwan for only 4 years in the 20th Century is creating the wrong perception that Taiwan is only a brief territory of mainland China and her historical claims to the island is tenuous at best is wrong. Such a statement does a disservice to the reader because it gives the impression that the Chinese desire to reclaim the island is not steep in its national history. The danger of such mistatement is it will give the US reader the wrong calculation on how long a conflict between the US and PRC would be if we supported Taiwanese independence. I think the issue the US should present to mainland China, is how can you rule an island that the population do not desire to lose their political freedoms, and have their wealth taxed to the max to finance projects in the mainland? It should be pointed out to the mainland that taking the island by force will only create additional financial burdens, because they must rebuild the infrastructure they would destroy in an invasion and allocate resources to control an embittered population, plus risk a possible war with the US that will destroy all the economic progress of the last 25 years. The mainland should be asked if all this is worth placating historical nationalistic desires of the past or face the reality that after 58 years of "independence" from the mainland, Taiwanese people may no longer feel that they are politically Chinese. If China has mature 21st Century thinking leaders, they will find a face saving way to let Taiwan go, but dominate her thru economical means (half of Taiwan's hi tech production base is in mainland China). Time will tell.

[RicocheT]

The 20 million people of Taiwan live on an island 80 miles away from a country of 1+ billion people. Taiwan will have to reach an accommodation with its huge neighbor.

U.S. policy is that the accommodation be peaceful. If Red China had rational leaders, it too would want a peaceful settlement. Taiwan has a strong economy that could be a good addition to the growing Chinese economy.

If Red China tries to enforce its will with missiles and war, it will squander the benefit of a working Taiwan economy and lose the hard work potential of the Taiwanese people. The U.S. would have to intervene and China would lose the present economic benefit of trade and friendship with the U.S.

The question is, will the leaders of Red China act in a rational way?

[jjm2111]

Thanks for the info.

[Cronos]

Ok, maybe, but Tibet never was Chinese, it's people are NOT ethnic Chinese and it has never been ruled by a Chinese Emperor. Tibet deserves to be free a h*** of a lot more than the Taiwanese deserve.