'The One-China Principle and the Taiwan Issue' White Paper
(Feb. 21, 2000) Full text of the white paper entitled "The One-China Principle and the Taiwan Issue", which was released by the Taiwan Affairs Office and the Information Office of the State Council.

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Beijing Calls for Timetable to Add Pressure
(Straits Times, March 14, 2000) China yesterday intensified the pressure on Taiwan with a commentary in the Communist Party's newspaper calling for a timetable and urgent preparations to be made for early cross-strait reunification. The People's Daily commentary, issued a week ahead of Saturday's presidential election in Taiwan, said: "From political and strategic considerations, we must have a timetable for the resolution of the Taiwan question which must not be allowed to be deferred indefinitely."

China's Zigzagging Path on Taiwan: Mixed Signals Leave Policy Unclear
(Washington Post, March 8, 2000) The zigzagging has added to the confusion over what the Chinese government really meant when it issued a white paper on Feb. 21 that, according to most interpretations, expanded the terms under which China would attack Taiwan. The confusion, sources here say, has arisen in large measure from a lack of clear leadership at the top of President Jiang Zemin's government, leaving policy on the sensitive Taiwan issue to be enunciated by hard-liners one day and soft-liners the next.

Taiwan Candidates Say Can't Accept China Timetable
(Reuters, Mar 5, 2000) Front-running independent candidate James Soong and Chen Shui-bian, contender for the pro-independence Democratic Progressive Party, both turned down a Beijing white paper saying China could use force if Taiwan dragged its feet on unification talks.

China's Jiang Renews Taiwan Threat
(Reuters, March 4, 2000) President Jiang Zemin said on Saturday that China would take "drastic measures" against Taiwan if it delayed reunification talks indefinitely, its second threat against the island within two weeks. "If the Taiwan authorities indefinitely reject negotiations on the peaceful resolution of the reunification question, then the Chinese government will be forced to take all possible drastic measures," the Xinhua news agency quoted Jiang as saying.

Warning by China to Taiwan Poses Challenge to U.S.
(New York Times, Feb. 27, 2000) China's abrupt shift to a more aggressive stance on Taiwan left the Clinton administration scrambling this week for a response and struggling to temper increased pressure for new sales of sophisticated arms to Taiwan, Congressional and administration officials say.

U.S. Commander To Visit Beijing
(Associated Press, Feb. 26, 2000) As China's government steps up pressure on Taiwan, the United States is sending the commander of U.S. Pacific forces to hold talks with Chinese military leaders, a U.S. official said Friday. Admiral Dennis Blair's visit starting Sunday comes less than a week after China threatened to attack Taiwan if the island refuses to heed Beijing's repeated demands to talk about reunification. China and Taiwan split amid civil war 51 years ago, and Beijing still regards the island as part of its territory.

US Insists on Peaceful Resolution to Taiwan Issue
(CNA, Feb. 25, 2000) Washington -- US President Bill Clinton stressed Thursday that America will continue to reject the use of force as a means of resolving the Taiwan issue and will also continue to make absolutely clear to Beijing that the issue must be resolved peacefully and with the consent of the people of Taiwan.

Three Leading Candidates Stress Sovereignty of Island
(Taiwan News, Feb.25, 2000) Taiwan's presidential candidates promised to hold cross-strait peace talks if elected, but said they will not be forced into negotiations by Beijing's strong-arm tactics. James Soong, Chen Shui-bian and Lien Chan all stressed the sovereignty of the nationalist island and said Beijing's intimidation would only provoke disdain among Taiwan's population.

China Rebuffs US Criticism, Blames Washington for Taiwan Tension
(AFP, Feb. 24, 2000) China rejected US criticism of its threat to use force against Taiwan on Thursday, accusing Washington of interfering in its internal affairs and increasing tension across the Taiwan Strait with arms sales. The United States' repeated violations of the three Sino-US joint communiques, and its continued arms sales to Taiwan are the primary reason for cross-strait tension, foreign ministry spokesman Zhu Bangzao told reporters.

Taiwan Refuses to Bow to China's Ultimatum
(AFP, Feb. 23, 2000) The Taiwan government and public Wednesday refused to bow to threats from Beijing to begin talks on reunifying the two sides separated for more than five decades or face an armed invasion. …a survey carried out by the cable television channel TVBS suggested the Taiwanese public were not intimidated by Beijing's threat.

Pentagon Issues Warning to China
(Washington Post, Feb. 23, 2000) A top Pentagon official yesterday warned China that it would face "incalculable consequences" if it followed through on threats to use force against Taiwan. The stern warning came in response to a Chinese government "white paper" that broadened the reasons Beijing would consider sufficient for using force against the self-governing island.

China's Army Paper Hails Taiwan Threat
(Reuters, Feb. 23, 2000) China's main army newspaper on Wednesday hailed Beijing's threat to Taiwan to start reunification talks or face invasion, saying it had dealt a sharp warning to advocates of independence for the island. The People's Liberation Army Daily - newspaper of the world's largest army - quoted military specialists as urging China's 2.5 million soldiers to "contribute to protecting the unity of the motherland".

Chinese Stand on Taiwan Worries U.S.
(AP, Feb. 22, 2000) The Clinton administration expressed concern Tuesday over a warning by China that it could use force if Taiwan delays indefinitely reunification talks with Beijing. Stanley O. Roth, assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee that the Chinese position paper appeared to be contrary to "the policy that is the bedrock of our relations" with China and Taiwan.

Taiwan Urges Chinese Flexibility
(AP, Feb. 22, 2000) In a brief reply to new threats from China, Taiwan urged Beijing today not to get bogged down in old disputes and to be more flexible in solving differences between the two sides. Beijing and Taipei should return to their flexible 1992 consensus in which they acknowledge the existence of "one China" but are each free to have a different view of what that China is, said Lin, vice chairman of the Mainland Affairs Council, which handles Taiwan's China policy.

China's Reunion Ultimatum Affects Stocks; Sparks Outrage
(CNN, Feb. 22, 2000) Candidates in Taiwan's presidential elections Tuesday denounced a new threat by China to use force to reunify the island with the mainland, as the ultimatum reportedly caused the island's stock market to fall. Meanwhile, leaders of Taiwan's Nationalist-led government restated its position that the two sides are governed by separate, sovereign administrations.

China Warns War Is Possible if Taiwan Delays Reunification
(New York Times, Feb. 21, 2000) The Chinese have long made it clear that any moves by Taiwan toward formal independence would lead to war. But today's White Paper adds -- for the first time in such a definitive policy statement -- that if Taiwan refuses indefinitely to pursue "the peaceful settlement of cross-Straits reunification through negotiations, then the Chinese government will only be forced to adopt all drastic measures possible, including the use of force, to safeguard China's sovereignty and territorial integrity."

China's White Paper: Threat or Overture? By Jonathan D. Pollack
(LA Times, March 6, 2000) The recent release of a Chinese "white paper" on policy toward Taiwan has prompted growing worries in Washington about the prospect of a looming crisis in the Taiwan Strait. To many observers, the document prefigures a renewed campaign to compel Taipei toward negotiations with Beijing over reunification. Washington has responded with stern messages to Beijing about the "incalculable consequences" of any use of force against Taiwan, to which the Chinese have responded with threats directed against the United States.

China's Three Ifs By Harvey Sicherman
(Foreign Policy Research Institute, March 3, 2000) Those who hoped the forthcoming presidential elections in Taiwan might pass without further disturbance to the island's relations with the mainland have now been sorely disappointed. Beijing has added fuel to the fire with a new and forceful statement of its position. This comes at a most awkward moment for the Clinton White House as it prepares for a vote on giving China permanent normal trading relations that would allow it to enter the WTO.

Military Rumblings Over Taiwan
(Editorial, New York Times, March 3, 2000) Now Taiwan and its supporters in the Pentagon and Congress want Washington to provide the island government with four American destroyers equipped with sophisticated Aegis radar and antimissile technology. There must be a more constructive way to manage the sensitive issue of Taiwan's future status.

Taiwan: Off With a Bang
(TIME Asia, March 6, 2000) Fiery words from Beijing mark the start of the island's critical presidential election, but the three leading contenders continue to focus mostly on local concerns
• On the Issues: The candidates share their views
• Tough Talk: Beijing too has a domestic agenda
• Jiang Who? Taiwan's youth couldn't care less about China
• Line of Fire: Sin-ming Shaw says the posturing must stop

'One-China' and International Law By Hungdah Chi
(United Daily News, March 1, 2000) The White Paper's statement that the Chinese Communists founded the People's Republic of China in 1949 is true. However, it is noteworthy that Beijing used the word "founded" here. It is, therefore, quite obvious that the succession relationship between the Republic of China and the People's Republic of China is not government-to-government, but state-to-state. In fact, the government of the Republic of China was still in Guangzhou, and the issue of "two Chinas" began to emerge in the international community at that time.

The Myth of 'One China' By William Shawcross
(Newsweek International, March 6, 2000) Taiwan, one of Asia's newest and most effective democracies, is nearing its March 18 vote for a new president. Just as during the last such election in 1996, its Big Brother, mainland China, is threatening to invade. Every time Beijing acts in such a way, it diminishes the myth that there is but ''one China.''

Paper War Games By Mahlon Meyer
(Newsweek International, March 6, 2000) The odd thing about it all was that peace was becoming a campaign theme in Taiwan's presidential election. All three of the major candidates had put forth proposals to improve relations with Beijing, which considers Taiwan a renegade province. One candidate promised a 30-year peace treaty. Another called for direct sea and air links. Even Chen Shui-bian, the candidate from the pro-independence party, offered to meet Chinese President Jiang Zemin in Hong Kong for negotiations. For the first time in a half century, everyone seemed to agree that it was time to learn to live with China.

Don't Overlook Beijing's Other Message By Karen M. Sutter
(Asian Wall Street Journal, March 2, 2000) U.S. government and media commentary on the People's Republic of China's recent white paper on Taiwan have overlooked an important part of the document's message. If you only look at the most aggressive part of the document, then it does present good reason for alarm. Beijing has introduced a new condition under which it might use force against Taiwan: the failure to return to the negotiating table to discuss reunification. But this is only one aspect of Beijing's complex message.

The Press Shares Blame on China By Tom Plate
(LA Times, March 1, 2000) The Washington-Beijing relationship is predictable and polarized. Poor news coverage doesn't help. The usual "he said-she said" cloud hung over the China-U.S. relationship last week. Beijing, immensely irritated (as always) by U.S. interference in the Taiwan impasse, issued its latest "white paper" on reunification.

Great Leap Backward By William Safire
(New York Times, Feb. 28, 2000) The tectonic plates are shifting under China's political system. The resulting stress seems to be leading toward a political earthquake. How else to explain Beijing's apparently irrational threat last week of growing readiness to take Taiwan by force? China's leaders are not crazy. The only rational explanation for their seemingly aberrant behavior is that a split in their leadership is widening rapidly. That severe internal stress could cause a lashing-out into war in the Strait.

Beijing's White Paper Power Play By Stephen J. Yates
(Taipei Times, Feb. 28, 2000) China's recently released white paper, "The One-China Principle and the Taiwan Issue," is an appeal to power rather than to reason, and will disappoint anyone in search of rationality in China's Taiwan policy. The white paper's twisting of the truth puts the White House to shame, and the timing of its release -- on Feb. 21 -- defies common sense.

China's Recent White Paper Also Means An Arms Race By Richard D. Fisher, JR
(Taipei Times, Feb. 28, 2000) China's recent white paper, titled "The One-China Principle and the Taiwan Issue," should be viewed as the initial volley of a more intense political-military campaign to subdue democratic Taiwan. As the Feb. 21 white paper signals a new urgency on reunification, it also contains the kernel of possible conciliation. But there should be no illusions; the white paper reinforces the PRC's emphasis on military force in its political strategy toward Taipei.

"China's White Paper is Counterproductive" By David M. Lampton
(The Nixon Center, Feb. 28, 2000) The recent White Paper on Taiwan policy entitled "The One-China Principle and the Taiwan Issue," and the People's Daily editorial released the same day (Feb. 21), are counterproductive. These documents will be seen in Taiwan, throughout East Asia, and in the United States as an awkward attempt to influence the Taiwan elections and a threat to the people of Taiwan to start negotiating reunification, or else.

Menacing Sound Effects From on High in Beijing By Arthur Waldron
(Washington Post, Feb. 27, 2000) Why did China decline Japan's invitation to join the Group of Eight meeting? Why did it let World Trade Organization accession talks with the Europeans break down? Why did it release a menacing new document threatening military force against Taiwan, particularly just hours after Strobe Talbott and his colleagues left China? The signs are that Jiang Zemin is having domestic political troubles and that the new hard line against the West is part of his survival strategy.

China: Big Mouth, Big Cost
(LA Times, Feb. 24, 2000) China has jumped into Taiwan's presidetial campaign with both feet, and its ill-considered leap could cost it dearly. Beijing warned this week that it might use force if Taiwan "indefinitely" delays talks about reunifying with the mainland. Taiwan has made clear there are a lot of things it's ready to discuss, including expanding trade and communications, but the Taipei government and all three presidential candidates reject the idea of negotiating anything under threat.

New Tension Over Taiwan
(Editorial, New York Times, Feb. 23, 2000) Ddangerous pattern is emerging in the troubled relations across the Taiwan Strait. During Taiwan's last presidential campaign, in 1996, China test-fired missiles over waters close to the island's major cities to protest what it saw as a drift toward independence. Now, with a new campaign under way, Beijing is again trying to intimidate Taiwanese voters and push the island's next leaders into early reunification talks on the mainland's terms.

Taiwan's Election, China's Future By Timothy Garton Ash
(New York Times, Feb. 23, 2000) This time around, a high-level United States delegation has been in Beijing, mainly to restore relations after NATO's bombing of the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade, but also to try to ensure that nothing like the saber-rattling of 1996 happens again. Yet now something very similar does seem to be happening, as the big brother across the strait shamelessly tries to intimidate Taiwan.

China's Threats
(Editorial, Washington Post, Feb. 23, 2000) On the issue of China's claim to Taiwan, the Clinton administration, like its predecessors, has pursued a policy of "strategic ambiguity." This policy grows less tenable as Taiwan gets more and more democratic and China remains a dictatorship. China's new threat, like its 1996 military "exercise," was intended partly to influence a Taiwanese presidential election. It also may have been meant to shore up President Jiang Zemin's flagging status among hard-liners and to underscore China's opposition to the Taiwan Security Enhancement Act, a proposal to increase U.S.-Taiwan military cooperation that has passed the U.S. House.

Beijing's Last Shot at Lee?
(Taipei Times, Feb. 22, 2000) How shall we regard the White Paper on Taiwan policy released by mainland China's State Council yesterday? The immediate impression is of length - all media reports took pains to note its 11,000-character bulk. Pity, then, that it is so short on substance or, more precisely, on new substance. Unless there are significant details buried somewhere in the tome that did not make the first cut of the news reports, there are no new points to the White Paper.

Frustrated China Intimidates Taiwan's Voters: Analysts
(Agence France Presse, Feb. 21, 2000) China is cranking up its bellicose rhetoric on Taiwan to intimidate candidates in the presidential elections and because it is frustrated over lack of progess on reunification, analysts say. China issued a new White Paper Monday reiterating its policy on Taiwan calling for peaceful reunification under the "One Country, Two Systems" formula through negotiation.