Showing posts with label #PLA. Show all posts
Showing posts with label #PLA. Show all posts

Why You Should Care About Taiwan

 Our daily news feeds are dominated by active conflicts—but what about the tensions simmering just below the surface, with global stakes just as high?

One of the most strategically significant, yet underreported flashpoints in the world is the Taiwan Strait—a 180km-wide body of international water separating Taiwan from mainland China. It's here that grey zone activity by the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) is escalating on a near-daily basis.

In this episode of Perspectives with Neilo, we explore:

  • The CCP’s claim on Taiwan—and why it’s historically weaker than Britain's claim on Ireland,

  • Taiwan’s democratic identity and its people’s overwhelming rejection of CCP rule,

  • The rise of grey zone warfare, military drills, and coercive tactics by China,

  • The impact of U.S. strategic ambiguity and why the U.S. might be pulled into a war with China,

  • Why Europe and the West must care about Taiwan’s future.

My guest is Bill Emmott (X: @bill_emmott) —author of Deterrence, Diplomacy and the Risk of Conflict over Taiwan (2024), former editor-in-chief of The Economist, and one of the most respected voices in international affairs. We recorded this episode on the sidelines of the MacGill Summer School in July.

We dive deep into the risks of conflict, the future of U.S.-China relations, and how the world can avoid sleepwalking into a war over Taiwan.


Date of Recording: July 18th, 2025.

 Map shows the locations of China’s military drills around Taiwan. The blue blocks represent war games held in 2022, the yellow and red blocks represent the “Joint Sword 2024” drills. Ref info - see Dive Deeper.


DIVE DEEPER:

Additional information on the topics covered in this episode:



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Music:
even darker variation by SamuelFJohanns via Pixabay
Cinematic Piano Ambient Trailer Soundtrack by Open-Music-for-Videos via Pixabay


#Taiwan #China #Geopolitics #IndoPacific #ForeignPolicy #USChinaRelations #SouthChinaSea #TaiwanStrait #PLA #CCP #Podcast #PodcastEpisode #BillEmmott #GreyZoneWarfare #StrategicAmbiguity #TaiwanDefense #TaiwanSovereignty #ChinaThreat #MacGill2025 #TaiwanMatters #StandwithTaiwan #TaiwanInFocus


China 101 - Interview with Dr Niall Duggan, UCC

 Regular listeners to Perspectives with Neilo will be aware that China and the behavior of its government, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), have been the subject of many of our past episodes, from their aggression against Taiwan and its neighbors in the South China Sea, to their questionable trade practices and the many dubious tactics they employ in their quest for global influence.

In this episode, we dig a little deeper into the background and hear the perspectives of Dr. Niall Duggan, a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Government and Politics at University College Cork. We discussed the origins of the party, the political framework and institutions, the Belt and Road initiative as well as how things have changed under leader Xi Jinping, plus much more.


Date of Recording: September 6th, 2024.




Leader of China, Xi Jinping stands with his right fist raised together with his Communist party comrades as they renew their oath of allegiance.
CCP Leader Xi Jinping and his party comrades renew their oath of allegiance


DIVE DEEPER:

Additional information on the topics covered in this episode:


  • Dr. Niall Duggan, Department of Government and Politics, University College Cork - Research Profile 
  • Whole-process people's democracy - Wiki



#China, #CCP, #PRC, #XiJinping, #Mao, #DengXiaoping, #Wholeprocessdemocracy, #Nationalcongress, #CentralCommittee, #PLA, #BeltandRoad, #BRI, #onebeltoneroad


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