Trade Relation Diplomacy: Taiwan’s Last Path to the World Trade Organization

With less than a month remaining in the 37th year of the 60-year lunar calendar cycle, the world is still bearing witness to unexpected historical events. On the morning of Jan. 6, U.S. time, Congress convened to certify the results of the election while the whole world waited for a surprise move by Donald Trump. No one thought, however, that Trump supporters from across the country would take over the Capitol, a symbol of American democracy.

These events drew collective ridicule from countries that are unfamiliar with or have been harmed by the double standards of American democracy. Mohamad Safa, the Lebanese representative to the United Nations, capped off the criticism with his tweet: “If the United States saw what the United States is doing in the United States, the United States would invade the United States to liberate the United States from the tyranny of the United States.”

Naturally, Western countries that stand on the side of democracy with the U.S. strongly condemned the events, clearly expressing their worry and anger at the riot that could shake Western democracy. Even British Prime Minister Boris Johnson described the events as “disgraceful scenes.”

As Taiwanese, we cannot look on merrily from afar. On the contrary — these “disgraceful scenes” are like a long-overdue look into a magic mirror that clearly reflects the disgusting state of Taiwan’s democracy. As the U.S. federal government steps up the search for and indictment of the thugs who trampled through the Capitol, this magic mirror reflects Taiwan’s bleak international status. At a moment when democratic countries across the globe stand against a common enemy, we have no standing to uphold justice for democracy. For one, we, too, have foolishly trampled through parliament. Moreover, in the post-Trump era, expectations remain that Taiwan will be used in anti-China politics.

It’s not difficult for us to realize that not only has Taiwan been rejected from international trade integration, but we have even lost our standing regarding universal values agreed upon by the international community. Thus, compared with the U.S., we should be even more concerned about our bleak status. In the wake of the U.S. riot, Joe Biden might be out of danger; the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership and the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, however, may throw Taiwan into harm’s way. No matter how many people in Taiwan pretend everything is going well and try to create an environment where industry is not impacted by these two agreements, entrepreneurial businesses, both large and small, on the front lines of industry and commerce have long felt the sting of the shifting situation. Furthermore, if these two agreements are really not worth mentioning, why are countries important to the international industrial chain scrambling to join?

Taiwan has indeed faced blockades to international politics and diplomacy. Our places of foreign exchange are often called “economic” or “cultural” units, as Taiwan once relied on Chinese culture to achieve success. Moreover, Taiwanese businesspeople all over the world have contributed considerably to diplomacy. In sum, trade relations have long been used to manage Taiwan’s foreign relations. Because Taiwan can persuade people with culture while gaining justice through benefits, even though blockades are everywhere, we are not an isolated island. Instead, we have a place in the global economy.

It’s a shame that in the past few years, for a variety of reasons, we have gradually veered off the stable track of diplomacy through trade relations and instead begun walking a dangerous and deadly tightrope. Since Taiwan is incompatible with the rest of the world in terms of regional integration and international consensus, I think Taiwan must change its bleak status and once more embrace trade relation diplomacy to obtain both justice and benefits — a possible path to joining the World Trade Organization.

The author is the founding chair of the Asia Pacific Cultural and Creative Industries Association.