Strait Perspective

Analysis

China, Taiwan, and the choices shaping regional security.

The latest analysis

Maritime security

Taiwan’s Other Front

Chinese Pressure and the Problem of Pacific Access

A cargo ship and waterfront facilities at Hualien harbor beneath a purple evening sky.
Hualien harbor on Taiwan’s Pacific coast, September 22, 2012. Archival photograph: AwOiSoAk KaOsIoWa / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0. Resized for web display; the photograph is shared under the same license.

Taiwan’s eastern approaches matter to any promise of outside assistance. Keeping them usable requires a plan for getting supplies all the way to their destination.

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Earlier analysis

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Communications resilience

When the Signal Fails

Taiwan’s Defense Against Disruption and Doubt

Taiwan should not have to identify a culprit before restoring a broken connection. Why protecting communications also requires careful investigation, human judgment, and public trust.

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Taipei 101 rises above a brightly illuminated city beneath a deep blue evening sky.
Taipei at night, viewed from Mount Elephant, May 1, 2021. Photograph: 毛貓大少爺 / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0. Resized; the photograph is shared under the same license.

Chinese military strategy

The Pressure Before the War

Chinese Military Strategy in the Taiwan Strait

Taiwan could avoid an invasion and still lose freedom to act. How maritime coercion could put trade on Beijing’s terms, and why protecting commercial access belongs at the center of defense planning.

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China Coast Guard vessel 4204 moored beside an industrial waterfront, photographed in October 2019.
China Coast Guard vessel 4204, photographed October 5, 2019. Archival image. Photograph: Tyg728 / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0. Resized and cropped for display; the displayed photograph is shared under the same license.

Taiwan defense

The Second Salvo

Rethinking Taiwan’s Defense Priorities

A new weapon is only useful if Taiwan can keep it in the fight. The case for funding ammunition, maintenance, and trained crews before ordering more large surface warships.

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Taiwan’s Ta Chiang corvette, hull number 619, moving through waves during a maneuverability demonstration in January 2022.
Ta Chiang corvette, January 2022. Republic of China Navy. Public domain. Cropped for display.

Regional security

Beyond the Strait

Shared Risks and Uneven Commitments in East Asia

Japan, the Philippines, and the United States share concerns about China. That does not mean they agree on what they are prepared to defend.

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Naval ships sail in formation across the South China Sea beneath a broad, cloud-filled sky during a multilateral maritime activity in September 2024.
South China Sea, September 2024. LSIS Daniel Goodman / U.S. 7th Fleet. Public domain. Cropped for display.

U.S.–China relations

Strategic Stability and the Taiwan Test

U.S.–China Relations in 2026

Washington and Beijing can agree on the value of stability while disagreeing about what it requires. Could that agreement survive a crisis over Taiwan?

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Donald Trump and Xi Jinping standing in front of Chinese and U.S. flags at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing in May 2026.
Beijing, May 2026. Daniel Torok / The White House. Public domain. Cropped for display.

Cross-Strait relations

Pressure, Deterrence, and Diplomacy

The Taiwan Strait in 2026

Military pressure and diplomatic restraint both claim to preserve stability. A closer look at the choices making the Taiwan Strait less predictable.

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Rows of angled shoreline obstacles at Guningtou Beach in Kinmen, with the sea and a hazy horizon beyond.
Guningtou Beach, Kinmen, January 2015. rheins. CC BY 3.0. Cropped for display.

Start with the context.

The resource library explains the history, governments, and policies behind these debates, with sources to explore for yourself.

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