STRATEGIC ANALYSIS

Positive Trends in Cross-Strait Relations

Gunjan Singh is Research Assistant at the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses, New Delhi. Click here for detailed profile
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  • September 2009
    Volume: 
    33
    Issue: 
    6
    Commentaries

    Democracy came to Taiwan under the leadership of Chiang Ching-Kuo, which brought an end to almost four decades of one-party dictatorship. Chiang Kai‐Shek had harboured the dream of overtaking the whole of China and establishing the rule of Kuomintang (KMT). But with the passage of time and a shift in the international political scenario, he realized that this would not be possible. The outcome of democratization was the Taiwanization 1 of Taiwanese domestic politics and as democracy matured, subsequent Taiwanese leaders realized the benefits of maintaining the ongoing status quo across the Taiwan Straits.

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