Taiwan election

Not even the shared threat of Wuhan coronavirus can bring Taiwan and mainland China closer together. Zhu Zhiqun says recent developments do not bode well for cross-strait relations in the years ahead.

Just about a week after the Taiwan presidential election, the rhetoric from both sides of the Taiwan Strait is aggressive. Will China take military action to take back Taiwan, or go with a safer approach? Zaobao associate editor Han Yong Hong examines the reasons for Tsai Ing-wen’s big win and concludes that young people will play a major role in the future.

While Beijing has been relatively restrained in commenting on the Taiwan election, Chinese state media has been criticising the US for backing the Democratic Progressive Party in opposing the mainland. Zaobao journalist Edwin Ong speaks to Sun Zhe, co-director of the China Initiative at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs, who opines that Chinese state media was raising reasonable doubt on behalf of the state.

On Saturday, Taiwan voted in its presidential election, with incumbent president Tsai Ing-wen of the Democratic Progressive Party returned to office with a resounding 57% of votes, defeating the Kuomintang’s Han Kuo-yu. Ng Soon Kiat analyses the results and what it means for Taiwan politics.

​​The 2020 Taiwan presidential elections can be said to be one of the most elusive ones yet. Incumbent Taiwan president Tsai Ing-wen’s opinion poll ratings may be miles ahead of the Kuomintang’s presidential candidate, Han Kuo-yu, but the latter’s overwhelming support at rallies suggest that he is still very much in the game. Only the ballots cast on 11 January 2020 will determine if Tsai or Han will emerge victorious.

The New Year speeches given by Taiwanese president Tsai Ing-wen and Chinese president Xi Jinping betrayed an atmosphere of cold hostility. Taiwan has made certain moves that have not gone down well with mainland China, seemingly with the support of the US, while the image of the CCP in Taiwan is not at its best. Han Yong Hong asks: “How will China respond?”

Political scientist Zhu Zhiqun assesses that the East Asian security outlook for 2020 is not very promising, given that overall security in the region has deteriorated on several fronts over the past year. He gives his take on key hotspots in the region — the Korean Peninsula, the South China Sea, and the Taiwan Strait — and sums up major powers’ priorities in the region.

Young Hong Kong protesters seem to take for granted that they have the support of other countries and regions. How accurate is that perception? Veteran China affairs journalist Han Yong Hong analyses the recent war of words over the prospect of Taiwan enacting a law to help Hong Kong asylum seekers, and dishes out a dose of realism in her assessment.

As the Taiwan election approaches, incumbent president Tsai Ing-wen has managed to improve her standing with voters, amid a challenge from Kuomintang candidate Han Kuo-yu. However, one of the issues that Ms Tsai has to address is cross-strait ties with mainland China. How will Ms Tsai show goodwill towards the mainland, while keeping the people of Taiwan happy?