Crisis Chronology

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TAIWAN

02/20/2024

Taiwan protests after Chinese Coast Guard boards a Taiwanese tourist boat.

01/15/2024

Nauru ends diplomatic relations with Taiwan and establishes relations with China.

01/14/2024

Pro-independence candidate Lai Ching-te elected president with 40 % of the vote compared to 33% for Hou Yu-ih, the candidate from the opposition Kuomintang, or Nationalist Party. The race was made unusually close by the popularity of a third candidate, Ko Wen-je, from the much smaller Taiwan People’s Party, which calls itself an alternative to the two major parties and is generally center-left, who got 26 percent of the vote.

11/20/2023

Opposition fails to unite behind an opposition candidate. After mutual accusations of bad faith, KMT leader Hou Yu-ih says that TPP rival Ko Wen-Je wrote that business magnate and independent candidate Terry Gou should drop out of the race. Without a unified front, the opposition has has little chance of defeating DPP’s pro-independence candidate, William Lai Ching-te (Mr. Lai), who further boosted his candidacy last week by naming Hsiao Bi-Kim, Taiwan’s representative to the United States, as his vice-presidential running mate.

08/28/2023

Terry Gou, billionaire founder of electronics manufacturing giant Foxconn, announces candidacy for president. He will run as an independent focused on taking down the ruling Democratic People’s Party, which he blames for the increasingly fractious relationship between Taiwan and China. The DPP nominee, Vice President Lai Ching-te is well ahead in the polls, and Gou’s candidacy may take votes away from other opposition candidates.

04/06/2023

President Tsai meets with US House of Representatives leader Kevin McCarthy, the highest US official to meet with her. China promises retaliatory moves and sends warplanes over Taiwan.

03/28/2023

Former Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou begins visit to China, in an effort to reduce tensions.

03/26/2023

Honduras establishes diplomatic relations with China. Taiwan ends diplomatic relations with Honduras.

12/26/2022

China sends record number of fighter jets and warships toward Taiwan in what China calls a “strike drill.”

11/26/2022

Elections for local and regional offices. The Kuomintang Party, which supports unification and engagement with mainland China, wins 19 of 21 seats being contested. The Democratic Progressive Party loses seats and Tsai Ing-wen resigns as leader of the party. The resolution on lowering the voting and candidacy age to 18 fails.

09/07/2022

French parliamentarians visit Taiwan in a show of support.

09/01/2022

Taiwan shoots down an unidentified drone that entered its airspace.

08/30/2022

Military fires warning shots at a Chinese drone flying over Taiwan.

08/05/2022

As its aggressive military exercises continue around Taiwan, China cuts off discussions with the US on military cooperation and climate.

08/04/2022

China holds live-fire military exercises on all sides of Taiwan, including firing missiles. Chinese media describes it as a rehearsal for “reunification operations.”

08/02/2022

Pelosi lands in Taiwan. Taiwan government offices have been hit by a massive cyberattack that shut them down for a time. US has deployed warships east of Taiwan, in the Philippine Sea.

07/31/2022

After Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives announces a trip to Southeast Asia that would include a visit to Taiwan, China warns of serious consequences if she does visit Taiwan. China suggests that they will take action, possibly including military action, because the tript suggests that the U.S. supports Taiwanese independence.

05/23/2022

On a visit to Asia, US President Biden asserts that the US would defend Taiwan if it were attacked. He and US government say this is not a change in policy after China protests.

04/26/2022

China protests patrol by US warship through the Taiwan Strait.

02/24/2022

Several Chinese jets enter Taiwan airspace on the same day that Russia invades Ukraine.

01/24/2022

Dozens of Chinese warplanes violate Taiwan airspace.

12/10/2021

Nicaragua ends diplomatic relationship with Taiwan.

10/28/2021

Tsai confirms that there are some US soldiers on Taiwan training the military.

10/09/2021

China reasserts its desire for a peaceful unification of Taiwan and criticizes a speech by Taiwan President Tsai about Taiwan bolstering its defenses.

10/07/2021

US confirms that about twenty US special forces troops have been in Taiwan to train the military there, which both countries had previously denied. China protests.

10/06/2021

US Pres Biden and China Pres Xi discuss Taiwan. Biden says they agreed to adhere to the One China policy, which asserts that Taiwan is part of China but has the right to govern and defend itself.

10/05/2021

China has flown more than fifty warplanes over Taiwan’s air defense identification zone (a region outside the island’s airspace) in recent days.

08/10/2021

China recalls Lithuanian ambassador.

07/20/2021

Taiwan opens a “Representative Office” in Lithuania.

10/19/2020

Chinese and Taiwanese diplomats fight at Taiwan celebration in Fiji.

10/13/2020

US continues plans to sell weapons to Taiwan, angering China.

09/25/2020

Government says China has flown warplanes in Taiwanese airspace 46 times in the last nine days.

09/19/2020

While US Undersecretary of State is visiting Taiwan, China flies bombers over the island.

05/25/2020

Taiwan offers to help the people of Hong Kong.

01/11/2020

Tsai re-elected

Tsai Ing-wen is re-elected in a landslide, sending a message to China in favor of maintaining an independent relationship. China has subtly increased pressure on Taiwan by getting its allies to renounce their recognition of Taiwan, forbidding mainlanders to travel there, and not ruling out military force in unifying the countries.

11/17/2019

Chinese aircraft carrier group sails through Taiwan Strait, and Taiwanese fighters fly over it. In the presidential campaign, Pres Tsai had just named William Lai to be her running mate. Lai angered the Chinese last year with his pro-independence stand on Taiwan. The election will be held 1/11/20.

09/19/2019

Kiribati cuts diplomatic ties to Taiwan and establishes them with China.

09/16/2019

Solomon Islands recognizes China, abandoning Taiwan, after China offers $8.5 million in investments.

09/12/2019

Billionaire Foxconn founder Terry Gou quits KMT rather than support prospective candidate Han Kuo-yu, who beat Gou in the part primaries in July. Gou is expected to run for president independently. Gou advocates closer ties with China, like Han. Han has popular support, but Gou’s business background would also attract support, splitting the pro-China electorate.

08/20/2019

US approves sale of sixty-six fighter planes to Taiwan.

07/08/2019

China demands that US cancel proposed $2.2 billion arms deal with Taiwan.

01/02/2019

The Kuomintang seconds Taiwan President Ling’s dismissal of Xi’s comments, suggesting “one state, two-systems” policy.

01/01/2019

In his annual address at the party congress, Xi says that Taiwan should be reunified with China, and that military force is a possibility to effect that.

11/24/2018

Ruling Democratic Party suffers severe losses in local elections. The Nationalists campaigned as a pro-business party that would take a more conciliatory approach to China. Pres Tsai says she will resign as head of the party.

11/22/2018

China is said to be using social media to affect the upcoming vote for local offices.

10/20/2018

Large pro-independence rally in Taipei.

09/25/2018

US announces substantial sale of military materiel to Taiwan, likely to anger China.

09/06/2018

Nauru demands that China apologize for the behavior of its senior diplomat at the Pacific Island Forum. The diplomat left the meeting after Nauru President Baron Waqa prevented him from presenting a speech on climate change. China is competing with Taiwan and Australia for influence with Nauru, which is one Taiwan’s last allies. All three countries have pledged billions of dollars of assistance for the island nation.

08/21/2018

El Salvador recognizes China and severs diplomatic ties with Taiwan.

06/11/2018

US opens office in Taiwan which most take as a kind of embassy, to the dissatisfaction of China.