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Global Affairs Session 81 20 August 2026 CHINA AND TAIWAN: THE SIMMERING VOLCANO The unfinished legacy of the Chinese Civil War China–Taiwan tensions are rooted in the unresolved division created in 1949. Beijing seeks reunification and reserves the use of force, while Taiwan functions as a self-governing democracy. Military pressure, defence preparations, American support, semiconductor dependence and great-power rivalry keep the Taiwan Strait exposed to coercion, blockade pressure, miscalculation and sudden escalation.

Global Affairs Session 37 15 May 2026 THE TAIWAN QUESTION Taiwan and the question of "One China" Taiwan is one island claimed by two governments, and it sits at the centre of the world's most dangerous flashpoint. The Republic of China and the People's Republic of China each trace a rival claim back to 1949, Taiwan has turned itself into an indispensable semiconductor economy, and Washington's stake in its fate now shapes the entire US-China relationship.