There is no shortage of geopolitical points of tension today. Between the tensions between the West and Iran in the Middle East concerning the resumption of uranium enrichment by Tehran, the imminent delivery of S400s to Turkey, and the increasingly intense frictions between Beijing and Washington, never in the last 30 years has the international situation been so unstable.
And this will certainly not get better with the American decision to authorize the sale of 108 modern M1A2 T Abrams main battle tanks to Taiwan, accompanied by 30 supporting armored vehicles, spare parts and ammunition, and 254 Stinger anti-aircraft systems , For an amount of 2,2 billion dollarsr. This authorization follows that on the transfer of technologies to support lconstruction of new attack submarines powered by AIP by Taipei, as well as the modernization of the Taiwanese F16, which had already triggered strong reactions from the Chinese authorities.
And in fact, Beijing was quick to react to this announcement, through the spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who declared barely a few minutes after the US declaration that China was firmly opposed to this delivery. let's remember that Beijing's political line considers that the independent island of Taiwan is not a country in its own right, but a province in rebellion against “one and indivisible China”.
It remains to be seen what follow-up will be given to these declarations, both on the Chinese and American sides. If Washington approves the delivery of these weapons systems to Taipei, Beijing could be tempted to oppose it by establishing a naval and air blockade of the island, now having the military means to carry out such an operation. This hypothesis, which appears very distant when viewed from Europe, is very concrete in popular China, whose state media all have a much more martial tone, and now regularly evoke the hypothesis of a war next, without however directly pointing out potential adversaries. Conversely, if the US authorities opposed this delivery, they would considerably undermine, both domestically and internationally, the credibility of American technological and military superiority largely showcased by the current mandate.
In this issue, as in others, the current dynamic seems unable to offer any satisfactory alternative for Westerners.