Written by Lucy Best. This article argues that issues of everyday governance, such as budgets, industrial development, and energy availability, that underpin Taiwan’s strategic success have become increasingly important for Taiwan’s partners to understand. Taiwan’s resilience is a question of whether its democratic institutions can continue to manage disagreement, produce effective policy and maintain public trust.
Written by Thomas J. Shattuck. This article argues that local and foreign diplomats and politicians should not see Taiwan as a small country and therefore believe it has little chance against the PRC. There is so much more to geopolitical influence than landmass. When considering population, the stock market, per capita GDP, defence, and foreign relations, Taiwan plays a larger role in the world than one might expect.
Written by Dr Kristina Kironska. This article identifies three observations of the week-long interdisciplinary visit to Taipei, namely the centrality of resilience, Taiwan’s self-perception of being a small country and the prominence of AI across diverse settings and policy domains. The Taipei meetings offer the opportunity to observe Taiwan through multiple institutional lenses in a compressed period of time.
Written by Huynh Tam Sang and Truong Tuan Kiet. This article argues that Cheng Li-wun’s claim that “Taiwan doesn’t have to choose” is implausible and misaligned with the current geopolitical context. Taiwan must accept the painful reality that neutrality is an illusion. It does not have the luxury to simply opt out of the geopolitical tug-of-war between the U.S. and China and should adopt the “porcupine strategy”.
Written by Tom Wilson. As Taiwan prepares for the 2026 urban resilience exercises, this article examines a key challenge in the current approach: a mismatch between how resilience is formally defined and measured, and how it operates in practice in Taiwan crisis settings, where informal, trust-based community networks often play a central role.
Written by Baosheng Guo. This article argues that Trump’s recent comments about arms sales to Taiwan at least violated the principle and tradition of the second article of the Six Assurances. Though his foreign policy is rife with unpredictability and uncertainty, his willingness to abide by the rule of law provides a measure of assurance to Taiwan’s security.
