|
German Leader Vows One-China Policy
Citing his countryâs own turbulent history, German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder affirmed his support Tuesday for the Beijing leadershipâs most frequently touted diplomatic principle - the ``one-China policyââ that insists Taiwan is part of the mainland.
| Taiwan set themselves up for this sort of thing. The country used to insist that the mainland was part of it. They used to describe themselves of "a province of the Republic of China." West and East Germany, on the other hand, were two separate countries with two separate political systems and a single history. East Germany was an artificial construct, so when the Soviet Union hit the skids it evaporated. Austria and Switzerland, on the other hand, are both German-speaking countries with their own histories and traditions. (The U.S. and Canada are English-speaking countries, ditto.) If Taiwan — formerly a part of Imperial Japan — goes the independence route, it's no skin off my fore, and none off Gerhard's that I can see. The mainlanders can turn red in the face and hop up and down and threaten war, but that still doesn't justify grabbing off an entire country that by now has a different culture and has always had a vocal Taiwanese (non-Han) population. It's only the might that makes it right. I'm glad to see the Fritzies are taking such a principled stand. |
Schroeder, touring China on a state visit, made the comments while meeting with Chinese and German business leaders in Beijing. ``We have experiences with what it means when a country is divided,ââ he said. ``We come to that position largely through our own history.ââ
Remember why the two Germanys were separated, Gerhard? Something to do about a wall, right? Machine guns, barbed wire, moats, alligators, the whole shootinâ match.
Taiwan and mainland China separated in 1949 amid a civil war. Since then, although the island functions as a sovereign nation, the communist leadership in Beijing has claimed it as part of China and says it could go to war if Taiwan moves toward formal independence. Schroeder also said his position means that Germany will not send ``sensitive goodsââ like weapons to Taiwan, whose main military supplier is the United States - a nation that nonetheless has formal diplomatic ties with China.
"And we donât want to be like the US."
China insists that its diplomatic partners renounce Taiwan sovereignty and trumpet their support of the ``one-China policy.ââ
And Gerhard blows his horn!
By the way, anyone hear from TGA lately?
Posted by: Steve White 2003-12-02 |
