The Iron Triangle of America, Japan, and the Philippines Must Stand as One on Taiwan
America’s China and Asia strategy appears muddled and inconsistent.
In 2025, China launched an average of 2.6 million cyber intrusions per day against Taiwan’s infrastructure, according to a new Taiwan government report. In response to recent live-fire Chinese blockade exercises around Taiwan, America’s response was as mild as one could imagine.
“That’s up to him, what he’s going to be doing,” President Trump said regarding how Secretary Xi might handle Taiwan.
The joint mission of America and Japan should be a free and open Pacific and Indian Ocean, plus a favorable balance of power in the Pacific Rim.
Japanese Prime Minister Takaichi’s recent comment that the use of force by China to blockade Taiwan would impact the economic and national security of Japan and therefore its survival should not be controversial.
A crisis involving Taiwan would surely threaten Japan’s national security. What is strange is that Beijing reacted as if Ms. Takaichi, a conservative politician, had declared war. Taiwan’s security is certainly tied to the economic and national security of Japan, America, and the Philippines.
We all should also oppose the use of force to change the status quo of a self-governing Taiwan.
It is China that is bullying the Philippines in its own territorial waters and recently welcomed the leaders of Russia and North Korea to a military parade. This highlights that three countries with nuclear weapons, China, Russia, and North Korea, are united as they seek to diminish and intimidate the non-nuclear Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan.
A takeover of Taiwan would give China a key strategic chokepoint in the region, enabling its false territorial claims and ambitions.
It would also undermine American alliances with Japan and the Philippines, threaten Guam’s security, and destroy U.S. credibility as a security guarantor in Asia.
In addition, as with Ukraine, it would embolden authoritarian expansion elsewhere in the world and give Beijing a platform to challenge U.S. naval and air capabilities as well as its economic and security interests for decades.
Beijing’s punitive actions since Prime Minister Takaichi’s remark have been unwarranted. China has halted seafood imports from Japan, canceled concerts in China by Japanese performers, halted many flights to Japan, and discouraged Chinese tourists and students from visiting Japan.
In addition, three Chinese warships have sailed past a Japanese island four days in a row, and Chinese armed coast guard ships have passed close to Japanese-administered islands north of Taiwan.
The United States should reject Mr. Xi’s effort to drive a wedge between Washington and Tokyo and condemn China’s coercive behavior. This is crucial given Taiwan’s next presidential election in 2028. If the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) wins again, it will be a signal that the Taiwanese want to preserve a self-governing identity.
The United States needs to stand with Japan - our most important ally in the world.
This alliance must be renewed and reinvigorated.
We must work closer together to harmonize and harden defenses, pursue the co-production of arms, missiles, minerals, and ships. Cooperate more in material sciences, chip making and advanced batteries.
We seek no conflict but rather to deter it as we jointly oppose the use of force to change the status quo of a self-governing Taiwan.