by Richard Sanders, Staff Writer
President-elect Donald Trump’s nominees for key positions, including the United Nations ambassador, national security adviser, and notably, secretary of state, are widely viewed as “China Hawks.” Their selections are generally welcomed in Taiwan, even by some who opposed Trump during his previous campaign.
Senator Marco Rubio from Florida, chosen as Trump’s chief diplomat, expressed his stance during the Republican National Convention in July, indicating that he expects a re-elected Trump to “continue supporting Taiwan” as he did in his first term. Rubio has consistently aligned with Trump in urging Taiwan to boost its defense spending, a perspective supported by security experts but not necessarily embraced by a majority of the Taiwanese populace.
While there has been no formal comment from Taiwanese President William Lai yet, in 2019, when Lai was vice president under President Tsai Ing-wen, Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs thanked Rubio and former Senator Cory Gardner for rejecting Chinese President Xi Jinping’s proposal for Taiwan to accept “one country, two systems.”
This framework was meant to apply to Hong Kong for 50 years post-handover in 1997 but effectively ended around 2020 when China enacted severe new laws. As a result, individuals in Hong Kong can face imprisonment for non-violent protests, such as wearing shirts with “Liberate Hong Kong” slogans. The majority in Taiwan oppose China’s “one country, two systems” model and any arrangement that would allow authoritarian rule over democratic Taiwan.
Rubio is outspoken about China, stating on social media that “Communist China is not, and will never be, a friend to democratic nations.” In May 2022, he introduced the “Taiwan Peace Through Strength Act,” aimed at accelerating U.S.-Taiwan military cooperation. He emphasized that “Putin’s invasion of Ukraine is not the first instance of an authoritarian regime invading its neighbor, and it won’t be the last. An invasion of Taiwan could occur within this decade. Taiwan requires our support, and my bill will compel Xi Jinping and the Chinese Communist Party to reconsider any reckless invasion plans. We must do everything possible to deter an attack on Taiwan, or we risk losing the Indo-Pacific region to the Chinese Communist Party.”
Rubio’s potential role as secretary of state poses a challenge for China, as he is on a blacklist or, more diplomatically, “sanctioned.” He was part of the group of 11 U.S. senators sanctioned by China in 2020 for their “wrong U.S. behaviors” concerning Hong Kong.
當選總統唐納德·特朗普提名的關鍵職位，包括聯合國大使、國家安全顧問，以及特別是國務卿，被廣泛視為「中國鷹派」。這些人選在台灣普遍受到歡迎，甚至一些在特朗普之前的競選中持反對意見的人也表達了支持。
來自佛羅里達州的參議員馬可·魯比奧，被選為特朗普的首席外交官，他在七月的共和黨全國大會上表達了自己的立場，表示他期望連任的特朗普「繼續支持台灣」，就像他在第一任期內所做的那樣。魯比奧一直與特朗普一致，呼籲台灣增加國防開支，這一觀點得到安全專家的支持，但並不一定受到台灣大多數民眾的認同。
雖然台灣總統賴清德尚未發表正式評論，但在2019年，當賴擔任蔡英文總統的副總統時，台灣外交部感謝魯比奧和前參議員科里·加德納拒絕了中國國家主席習近平提出的台灣接受「一國兩制」的提議。
這一框架原本是為了在1997年移交後適用於香港50年，但在2020年中國實施嚴厲的新法律後，事實上已經結束。因此，香港的個人可能因為非暴力抗議而面臨監禁，例如穿著印有「解放香港」標語的T恤。台灣大多數人反對中國的「一國兩制」模式以及任何可能使威權統治覆蓋民主台灣的安排。
魯比奧對中國直言不諱，並在社交媒體上表示「共產中國不是，並且永遠不會成為民主國家的朋友。」在2022年5月，他提出了「透過力量維護台灣和平法案」，旨在加速美台軍事合作。他強調「普京對烏克蘭的侵略不是威權政權侵略鄰國的第一次，也不會是最後一次。台灣可能在這十年內遭受侵略。台灣需要我們的支持，我的法案將迫使習近平和中國共產黨重新考慮任何魯莽的侵略計劃。我們必須竭盡所能地威懾對台灣的攻擊，否則我們可能會將印太地區拱手讓給中國共產黨。」
魯比奧作為國務卿的潛在角色對中國構成挑戰，因為他被列入黑名單，或更正式地說，受到「制裁」。他是2020年因對香港的「錯誤美國行為」而被中國制裁的11位美國參議員之一。
