Should Taiwan be worried if it loses all its allies?
With El Salvador the fifth nation to break ties with the self-ruled island since Tsai Ing-wen took power, Taiwan ‘must do everything it can’ to retain its remaining allies, analysts warn
Taipei must do all it can to resist Beijing’s diplomatic squeeze and retain its 17 remaining allies or risk losing its sovereignty if the number shrinks to zero.
That was the warning from analysts on Taiwan after El Salvador became the fifth ally to switch diplomatic recognition from the self-ruled island to Beijing since Tsai Ing-wen of the independence-leaning Democratic Progressive Party took over as leader in 2016.
The latest switch has left Taipei with 17 allies, down from 22 just over two years ago and 70 before the United Nations recognised Beijing as China’s sole representative in 1971.
Taipei has been losing allies much faster under Tsai than under the island’s previous leader, Ma Ying-jeou, of the mainland-friendly Kuomintang.
The losses are also on track to be higher than when Tsai’s DPP predecessor, Chen Shui-bian, was in power. Between 2000 and 2008, Chen lost nine allies but he also developed ties with three countries.
Beijing considers Taiwan a wayward province subject to eventual unification with the mainland, if necessary by force and Tsai’s losses have come as a result of Beijing’s pressure.
Beijing has ramped up its campaign to woo away Taipei’s allies in an attempt to force Tsai to accept the “one China” principle, which Beijing sees as the political foundation for continued cross-strait exchanges.