Abstract
Taiwan’s status as an independent country and how it
is acknowledged by other nations is politically complex. While Taiwan has its
own independent government and military, it is left out of the United Nations
and must be referred to as Chinese Taipei in global events like the Olympics.
Taiwan’s historically complicated relationship with the Republic of China (PRC)
directly influences its foreign relations with national superpowers, like the
United States, on how “strategically ambiguous” their allyship can be. This
paper explores the crux of this strategic ambiguity—how the United States can
refrain from committing to Taiwan’s defense while simultaneously maintaining
diplomatic relations with both Taiwan and China. Furthermore, this paper will
challenge how effective an approach of strategic ambiguity is as a long-term
solution as well as propose moderate actions the United States can take ranging
from a military and policy-driven standpoint to decrease the risk of global
conflict.
