ABSTRACT
Since the naval clashes in Yongxing Island (Woody Island) in the Xisha (Paracel Islands) in 1974, and at Chigua Jiao (Johnson South Reef) in the Nansha (Spratly Islands) in March 1988, military battles have disappeared in waters of the South China Sea. Nevertheless, tensions over national sovereignty and maritime interests have been lingering since then, despite great attention which has been paid to prevent potential conflicts in the Spratly Islands. Starting from 1990, Indonesia, a non-claimant to the Spratly Islands, has initiated an annual Workshop on Managing Potential Conflicts in the South China Sea (hereinafter the SCS Workshop) with the purpose of exchanging views and building confidence among the parties concerned surrounding the South China Sea region. Other Track-II conferences initiated by respective claimant states have been held frequently as tensions re-emerged since 2009. Taiwan is a claimant to the South China Sea Islands but problems of diplomatic recognition have handicapped Taiwan’s participation in the solution of territorial disputes in both bilateral and multilateral forums. Where Taiwan stands in its basic positions over sovereignty claims or in a military confrontation embroiled between China and other claimants and non-claimants has become a Catch-22 situation for decision makers in Taipei. Taiwan’s siding with the People’s Republic of China (PRC) asserting Chinese historical claims in the South China Sea could change power games in the region, but Taiwan’s dependence on the US for security protection might also be endangered.
