Word: straitly
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Here's a rule of diplomacy: when the blindingly obvious becomes controversial, you've got a problem. If political leaders were sitting down to discuss potential hot spots in Asia, it would be hard to avoid concluding that the Taiwan Strait was one of them. On one side of the waterway is Taiwan, whose democratically elected leader speaks of it as a sovereign state. On the other side is China, which regards Taiwan as no more than a renegade province, and has vowed to prevent, by force if need be, any formal declaration of independence by Taipei. Oh, and another...
...surprise? Because in the past, Japan-mindful of China's position that what happens to Taiwan is nobody's business but its own-had never publicly linked itself to U.S. policy on the Strait. Indeed, the last such security statement, issued by Japanese and U.S. officials in 2002, didn't mention Taiwan at all. To add zest to the controversy, the communiqué came at the end of a week when China had already been annoyed by American musings on Taiwan. In testimony to the Senate Intelligence Committee, Porter Goss, Director of the CIA had said-in another display...
...detour that can add several hours to the trip. But last week's deal means more than just convenient travel. China and Taiwan are bitter rivals; the mainland considers the island a breakaway province and hasn't ruled out reuniting with it by force. An accord on cross-strait travel shows a rare willingness to compromise. "It's hard to tell whether both sides will continue the dialogue," says Andrew Yang, secretary general of the Chinese Council of Advanced Policy Studies in Taipei, "but this is a very positive approach which shows both Beijing and Taipei are eager to establish...
...unlike 2003, when the charters were limited to Taiwan airlines, this year mainland carriers will be allowed to land in Taiwan for the first time. "This is a historic moment," says Eric Teng, a Shanghai-based businessman from Taiwan. "It can really help achieve peace in the Taiwan Strait." And, he adds, it will shave a few hours off his journey home...
...Even without such scenarios, piracy in the Strait of Malacca is already exacting a human toll. "It's becoming more and more violent," says Noel Choong, director of the IMB's Piracy Reporting Centre. The cause is an outbreak of kidnapping for ransom by pirates in the strait, which most recently saw four sailors spirited away from a tugboat in October (two of the men are still missing). In the worst such incident, off the coast of northern Sumatra, four crew members were killed in January after negotiations between their kidnappers and the ship's owners broke down. "We have...