Since 1979, when the US formally recognised the Peoplersquo;s Republic, there have been no open contacts at the highest level between Taipei and Washington, even though American arms have flowed to Taiwan, amid the understanding that US assistance would be at hand in the event of Chinese aggression towards what Beijing officially regards as a renegade province.The China-US relationship has hitherto been based on a ldquo;one-Chinardquo; policy.By arrangement with Dawn. And induces an involuntary shudder. China is just one potential flashpoint mdash; and John Pilgerrsquo;s new, somewhat sensationally titled documentary The Coming War on China offers an excellent overview of why Beijing may have had reasonable cause to feel militarily beleaguered even before the advent of Trump.There is certainly a case to be made for recognising Taiwanrsquo;s independence. Hardly anyone considers that feasible. But last weekend the President-elect gave notice that he intends to use the one-China policy as a bargaining chip for economic concessions.The China-US relationship has hitherto been based on a ldquo;one-Chinardquo; policy.There is, of course, considerable irony in the CIA complaining about foreign interference in securing the election of a far-right candidate, given that has been its specialty over the decades in all corners of the world. Trump, who at one point during the campaign accused China of ldquo;rapingrdquo; the American economy through currency manipulation and the like, has threatened a 45 per cent tariff on Chinese exports to the US. We canrsquo;t be sure of its consequences, but the Hollywoodish phrase ldquo;you ainrsquo;t seen nothinrsquo; yetrdquo; comes to mind. Therersquo;s been precious little evidence so far of a statesmanlike posture. Russia, meanwhile, appears to perceive Trump as a potential saviour mdash; and one who has, at that, dismissed out of hand purported evidence from the CIA that Moscow-backed hackers possibly helped to secure his election. US President-elect Donald Trump (Photo: AP) No one before Donald Trump has made it to the White House with a deficit of more than 2.Efforts to unravel the nuclear deal with Iran could prove disastrous, but Benjamin Netanyahu mdash; who, somewhat like Vladimir Putin, Rodrigo Duterte and any number of right-wing extremists in Europe espies a kindred spirit in Trump mdash; reckons he stands an excellent chance of convincing the new administration otherwise.
Then again, there are already plenty of other indications that an extraordinary lack of wisdom is precisely what the incoming administration will bring, to a large extent, on both domestic and international fronts. But trying to blackmail China into relinquishing its claim to the island would be extraordinarily unwise.And China, which served during the campaign as a regular scapegoat for the Republican candidatersquo;s wrath on the economic front, is steadily being disabused of the notion that a businessman in the Oval Office would effectively mean business as usual.5 million in the popular vote.Either way, unless direct and incontrovertible evidence emerges of the polling results themselves being manipulated, itrsquo;s American voters in particular states who must wear the primary blame for ushering in a Trump presidency.It baulked at Trump receiving a congratulatory phone call from Taiwanrsquo;s President, Tsai Ing-wen, which was initially construed as a diplomatic gaffe, although it subsequently emerged that the gesture was months in the planning.Trumprsquo;s appointments and nominations so far to his board of directors, aka the Cabinet, range from the reckless to the ludicrous, paving the way for an administration that is beginning to be seen as potentially fascist in its inclinations, given its military and corporate components. And Trump isnrsquo;t entirely wrong in saying these are the same people who insisted Saddam Hussein had stockpiled weapons of mass destruction.
The assumption that he might sober up after winning the election, as realisation gradually dawned of the responsibilities that would shortly be thrust on him, was largely misplaced. That doesnrsquo;t mean the CIA is necessarily barking up the wrong tree this time around, even though the FBI is more circumspect.Many of the key appointees will require congressional approval, but it is hard to see the Republican majorities in both Houses putting up much resistance, given that even Trumprsquo;s most vociferous critics among the GOP establishment have retreated sharply from their pre-electoral invective.Some of the most deleterious effects of the coming presidency will no doubt be felt within the US, but far-reaching consequences can be expected in the wider world
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