Review of "Taiwan’s Mainland Policy and the Reunification of China," by Maria Hsia Chang

Review of

Taiwan’s Mainland Policy and the Reunification of China, by Maria Hsia Chang


Five out of five stars

 Written in 1990 before the People’s Republic of China (PRC) became an economic superpower and arguably the largest economy in the world, this book is a look back to when the transformation was in the early stages. Although the government of Taiwan and that of the PRC were still at stiff odds, there was a thaw in the movements of people, goods and money between the two entities. In order to tone down the differences, both sides were content to label the interactions “unofficial.”

 With the hindsight of thirty years of elapsed time, one can look at what was stated in this book and see the embryonic development of what has become a major implementation of realpolitik, where both sides want the same goal of unification, just on different terms. In the meantime, both have decided to exchange currency rather than weaponry. In 2018, trade between the two was $150 billion and travelers from the PRC made 1.66 million visits to Taiwan.