Independence or Reunification? The Evolving PRC–Taiwan Relations

Abstract The article attempts to examine the relationship between Taiwan, a de facto political entity, and the People’s Republic of China (Mainland China) since 1949, the landmark year when the then ruling party KMT (The Nationalist Party) was defeated by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) in the Mainland. Essentially, the narrative is focused on the government policies by the two respective political entities. The PRC pledged to unify Taiwan again and subsequently its unification policies are delineated. A two-stage schema is proposed for the analysis, albeit the second stage can be further divided into three phases. As for Taiwan, a five-stage categorization is proposed. Moreover, three sets of factors influencing the cross-Strait relations would be discussed, namely the power dynamics within the PRC, internal development inside Taiwan and the role of the USA. Finally, the implications of the coming of Trump era are outlined.