Taiwan is openly favoured by the Bushies, whereas China is under rhetorical attack time and again. The explanation clearly is that the Taiwanese must have a strong lobby in the US. Here is Hannes Stein´s answer to “The Israel Lobby”, a much debated book by opolitical scientiests John Mearsheimer and Stephen Walt.

Officially the US does not recognize the Taiwanese, in step with most nations in the world today. Inofficially, however, the US has strong economic ties with Taiwan, clandestinely poke arms in their general direction and keep at least one aircraft carrier in the area, lest the Chinese do something really foolish.

This is nothing new, but under the terrible rightwing Bush adminisdtration there has been an observable shift. Under Clinton there had been “stretegic ambiguity”, now America seems to be stepping out of the ambiguous fog. When he was still in office the neocon chief ideologist Paul Wolfowitz maid the following statement: “As President Bush and others have said, the United States is committed to doing whatever it takes to help Taiwan defend itself. Our position is clear. We don’t support Taiwan independence, but we oppose the use of force.”

What he meant by “the use of force” was merely and exclusively the putative force that might be used by Mainland China: hardly an impartial stance. However, Mr Bush himself sounded even more bellicose. He said unambiguously that in case of an attack America would take the side of Taiwan. He, too, used the dubious phrase the US would do “whatever it takes”. Like, deploy a nuclear war head over Beijing?

George W. Bush and Paul Wolfowitz are only the two most visible heads of a network that extends far beyond these two individuals. The Republican Party—of which both the aforementioned gentlemen are members—asserted in Philadelphia in 2000: “Our policy is based on the principle that there must be no use of force by China against Taiwan. We deny the right of Beijing to impose its rule on the free Taiwanese people. All issues regarding Taiwan’s future must be resolved peacefully and must be agreeable to the people of Taiwan. If China violates these principles and attacks Taiwan, then the United States will respond appropriately ... America will help Taiwan defend itself.”

Here, a very big sabre is audibly being rattled. In one of his unguarded moments (of which there were many) President Bush betrayed his real feelings when he spoke of a “Republic of Taiwan” in the presence of TV cameras—the correct term would have been “Republic of China”, since Taiwan is not an independent nation. What does the US have to gain by a confrontation with China? Not much. The People´s Republic is a market with fantastic opportunities that will gain even more significance. Moreover, a confrontation that degenerates into war might prove costly for the US in more than economic terms. American popularity would plummet even further, and the US could seriously get its nose bloodied. Rationally, therefore, it can hardly be explained why the rightwing loony squad in DC decided to throw in its lot with this tiny insular wannabe state in Asia.

So, why are they doing it?

The answer, of course, is the Taiwan lobby. They have been hiring PR companies in the past to do their dirty work for them, and perhaps it is no wonder that their propaganda does not fall on deaf ears in a country in which virtually every major cities has a China Town where you can order Peking Roast Duck.

You may not have noticed, dear reader, but all of the above is a parody. The book I´ve been trying to parody is “The Israel Lobby” by two conservative American professors of politology: Stephan Walt and John Mearsheimer. Thus read “the Arab-Islamic world” for whenever I´ve used “China”—and for Taiwan, the island nation that has no legitimacy according to international law, kindly insert “Israel”.

I have used a simple trick. In my diatribe against the rightwing Bush crazies who are aiding Taiwan against all reason I consistently failed to mention a minor but essential detail: China is a dictatorship, Taiwan is a democracy. In China there are concentration camps up to this very day, in Taiwan there aren´t. The Chinese government talks openly about its intention to annex Taiwan; the Taiwanese government whispers secretly about secession and independence.

To be sure, Israel is the land of the Jews. But Israel is also something else, and this may in the final analysis prove more important: it is the only liberal democracy in the Middle East, with an independent muckraking press and an independent judiciary which makes politicians answer for all their high crimes and misdemeanours. Israel also resembles Taiwan by being a high tech country. It boasts an economy that is brimming with energy and is an oasis of learning and invention in a desert of tyranny.

Here is the main reason why the US supports Israel: the great republic founded on the principles laid down in the Declaration of Independence cannot abandon a democratic ally. Or put more pessimistically, it SHOULD not do so. Of course there also exists an Israel lobby in America. Fortunately it does its job quite well. One final word on Taiwan. Should I live to see the day when an American administration leaves “strategic ambiguity” behind in favour of full diplomatic recognition I will celebrate with a cup of green tea. Shalom.