Cross-Strait Crossroads: Pathways for America’s Taiwan Policy

For three-quarters of a century, Washington, Taipei, and Beijing have shown that adaptive statecraft can prevent crises from becoming conflicts. As the security environment in the Taiwan Strait grows increasingly contested, the Center for Asia Policy Studies at the Brookings Institution and RAND’s China Research Center organized a series of workshops with leading experts to consider a range of future U.S. policy approaches toward Taiwan. These workshops produced policy briefs that explored U.S. priorities regarding Taiwan, options for limiting U.S. commitments while expanding Taiwan’s self-defense capabilities, options for calibrating diplomacy to stabilize cross-Strait dynamics, the merits and risks of a more active denial strategy, and the feasibility and consequences of a policy shift toward strategic clarity. While these policy briefs represent differing perspectives and policy options, they clearly illustrate where the expert community agrees and disagrees and where further examination is needed.