ABSTRACT
During Taiwan's first direct presidential election in March 1996, China, in order to influence public attitudes towards independence in the island, conducted three ballistic missile exercises towards Taiwan. Its action not only shocked local people but also swiftly brought the American 7th Pacific carrier battle group to the region. Once the dust had settled, the (USA) emphasized the importance of ‘preventive diplomacy’, whilst, at the time, being thoroughly committed to the concept of ‘preventive defense’. In addition to strengthening the USA—Japan Mutual Defense Treaty and widening the protection of surrounding areas, the USA had begun to build and deploy a Theater Missile Defense System (TMD) in the northeast Asia-Pacific region to counter any ballistic missile attack from a ‘rogue’ state.
