Mound City

There are efforts all across the globe to achieve greater means of deomcratic and economic freedom. One of the most potentially explosive situations exists between Taiwan and China. As of a few days ago, the Chinese raised the bar for Taiwanese independence.

BEIJING, Dec. 17 - The Communist Party-controlled legislature has indicated that it is preparing to enact a law against secession, possibly mandating military action if Taiwan were to declare independence.

A draft law forbidding secession by any part of China, announced Friday by the New China News Agency, suggests that President Hu Jintao is seeking to eliminate any lingering doubts that the Chinese military would attack Taiwan if the island formally severed ties with the mainland.

"This is a step the people have been demanding for many years," says Yu Keli, a Taiwan expert at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in Beijing. "There can be no ambiguity that China will fight Taiwanese independence no matter what."

This all comes on the heels of an electoral victory by the Taiwanese Nationalist Party which supports better relations with China and opposes the pro-indepenedence Taiwanese President Chen Shui-bian.

Despite a seeming decrese in interest in independence, the fact remains that,

The United States has pledged to defend Taiwan if the mainland attacks…

Any future pro-independence actions on part of the Taiwanese contains the inherent danger of draging the United States in as well. Holding back concerns for serious action in the Taiwanese Straight is the fact that the U.S., China and Taiwan are all locked in a trade relationship. The disruption of such a relationship could have economic reprocussions that none of the countries involved wants to see happen.