Russell Hsiao: Taiwan - Cross-Strait Relations Beyond 2020

ABSTRACT

Madame Tsai Ing-wen won a second term in January 2020 to serve as the president of Taiwan for another four years. The first term of her presidency saw steady improvements in US-Taiwan relations and a deterioration in cross-Strait ties as Beijing ramped-up diplomatic, military, and economic pressure on Taipei to accept its terms for unification. As the power disparity between Taiwan and China widens, Taipei is becoming more susceptible to Chinese coercion and CCP General Secretary Xi Jinping may become more emboldened to use military force. What are the implications for the Taiwan Strait over the next four years and beyond? 

BIOGRAPHY

Russell Hsiao is the executive director of GTI and adjunct fellow at the Pacific Forum. He previously served as a senior research fellow at the Project 2049 Institute, National Security fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, and Penn Kemble fellow at the National Endowment for Democracy. Prior to those positions he was the editor of China Brief at The Jamestown Foundation from October 2007­ to July 2011 and a special associate in the International Cooperation Department at the Taiwan Foundation for Democracy. While in law school, he clerked within the Office of the Chairman at the Federal Communications Commission and the Interagency Trade Enforcement Center at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative.

Mr. Hsiao received his J.D. and certificate from the Law and Technology Institute at the Catholic University of America’s Columbus School of Law where he served as the editor-in-chief of the Catholic University Journal of Law and Technology. He received a B.A. in International Studies from the American University’s School of International Service and the University Honors Program.