The strategic triangle between Taiwan, China and the USA: A European perspective

Taiwan occupies a strategic position in the Western Pacific between Northeast and Southeast Asia. Claimed by the People's Republic of China since its foundation in 1949, Taiwan has nevertheless remained under the control of the Republic of China, thanks to a security guarantee provided by the United States as early as 1950. Although this guarantee has taken another form (the Taiwan Relations Act) since the Sino-U.S. normalization of relations in 1979, it has compelled both sides of the Taiwan Strait to take Washington's view and interests into account in the resolution of their differences and the future of their relationship. While the U.S. government remains agnostic about the final outcome of this dispute, it has insisted upon its peaceful resolution, the preservation of the status quo in the Strait and its opposition to any solution that would not be approved by the majority of the Taiwanese. Since the 1990s, the U.S. has also declared its support for and protection of Taiwan's democracy. Although the EU is not in a position to offer any similar security guarantee to Taiwan, the political stance of the EU with regard to Taiwan's future is identical to that held by the U.S.