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The deals with Kaohsiung were only part of Beijing’s efforts — it also wooed Nantou and Hualien, local governments run by non-ruling party politicians. The purpose of these policies, generally trade and tourism sweeteners, is to build support for Beijing in local areas, and to create centers of resistance and evasion towards Taiwan’s central government China policy.
Beijing has not reserved this policy for Taiwan alone. In fact, it is a strategy that it has pursued successfully elsewhere, particularly in Australia. And it is coming soon to the United States.
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Having tested these methods in Taiwan, Australia, and elsewhere, sooner or later US state and local governments will become battlegrounds for Chinese Communist Party influence. Supporters of democracy in the US and Taiwan will have to remain vigilant, not just for suppression of critics and dissidents, but also for attempts to support political campaigns by United Front operatives and for non-Chinese politicians with United Front links. Individuals who are United Front agents must be publicly identified and the local media vigorously informed, especially the Chinese language media, which should be monitored.
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Full piece by Michael Turton:
