Państwo Środka i Słoneczniki. Jak demokratyzacja Republiki Chińskiej zmienia relacje w Cieśninie Tajwańskiej

Peaceful rapprochement between Taiwan and the People’s Republic of China observed throughout the first and most of the second term of Taiwan’s President Ma Ying-jeou have been founded on two pillars: deepening economic cooperation and high level diplomacy. The strategy was pursued predominantly in the public dimension with apparent intention to limit popular involvement in the complex negotiations, but this political practice has reached its limits. Recent political, social and economic developments in Taiwan, as reflected in the Sunflower Movement, have shown that democratic changes in the Island are too significant to be ignored in high level diplomacy and economic integration scenarios. It is time to add another actor to the cross-strait equation: Taiwanese society with its political expectations, fears and ambitions. This might exert an impact not only on the 2016 parliamentary and presidential elections in Taiwan, but also on future relations with the PRC.