AUTHOR
Scott Simon
Associate Professor, Department of Sociology and Anthropology
Canada's leading centre for analysis and debate of international affairs.
- Home
- Scott Simon
Scott Simon
-
-
Articles
-
Views
-
Author's Posts
Why Taiwan is an International Issue
- Analysis
- September 20, 2017
China works hard to convince the world that any decision about Taiwan is entirely a Chinese domestic affair. This has not, however, always been the official line of the Chinese Communist Party. In 1936, when the Republic of China (ROC) was China’s government and Taiwan (Formosa) was a Japanese colony, Chairman Mao Zedong offered support
READ MORE
China’s Republican Flag: A Conundrum for Canada–Taiwan Relations
- Analysis
- July 30, 2017
China’s Republican flag — the French-inspired tricolore representing nationalism, democracy, and peoples’ livelihood in Sun Yat-sen’s Three Principles of the People — was the national flag of all of China from 1928 until the founding of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in 1949. After 1949, Cold War politics kept both flags flying internationally. Since
READ MORE
Taiwan: Just a Phone Call Away
- Analysis
- January 20, 2017
The election of Donald Trump as president of the United States brought unexpected attention to Taiwan. One of Trump’s first post-election acts was to exchange telephone courtesies with President Tsai Ing-wen, calling her “President of Taiwan” on Twitter. Since Tsai, of Taiwan’s Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) was elected in 2016, this was a conversation between
READ MORE
Taiwan’s New Government and Canada: Looking Forward to Deepened Ties
- Analysis
- January 18, 2016
If Canadians take notice of one election this year, it should be the Taiwanese elections of January 16. After eight years of rule by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and unprecedented economic rapprochement with China, the Taiwanese elected Tsai Ing-wen from the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) as president. Holding a law degree from Cornell and
READ MORE
On the Fence: Canada’s Role in the Western Pacific Through An Election Lens
- Analysis
- September 17, 2015
Canada’s election, in the 70th anniversary year of the conclusion of World War II, should be a time to ponder Canada’s role in the Western Pacific. Most pressing is the challenge of how Canada should respond to China’s increasingly ambitious territorial claims. China’s leaders exposed their aspirations on September 3 by marking the anniversary of
READ MORE
“One China” as Floating Signifier: the Benefits of Diplomatic Ambiguity
- Analysis
- April 17, 2012
When Canada recognized the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in 1970, the Joint Communiqué stated, “The Chinese Government reaffirms that Taiwan is an inalienable part of the territory of the People’s Republic of China. The Canadian Government takes note of this position of the Chinese Government.” Canada maintained diplomatic silence, in spite of China’s requests
READ MOREArunachal Pradesh: Meeting China’s Claim in the Eastern Himalayas
- Analysis
- March 20, 2012
Last week, Chief Minister Nabam Tuki of the Northeast Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh led a delegation to Canada. He attended the Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce in Toronto and participated in the Brand India Expo in Ottawa. Meeting prospective investors and government officials, he highlighted the potential of Indo-Canadian cooperation in his state for tourism,
READ MOREThe Senkaku Islands: A Forgotten Flashpoint in the Western Pacific
- Analysis
- March 12, 2012
The uninhabited Senkaku Islands of Japan, claimed by both China and Taiwan under the name Diaoyutai, may seem of minor significance to observers outside the region. These eight uninhabited islands have a land area of only 6.3 km2 and a highest elevation of 383m. Yet every time Japan affirms its sovereignty over the islets, it
READ MOREKeystone XL and its Impact on Canada-U.S. Relations: A Red Herring?
- Analysis
- November 25, 2011
A delay in U.S. approval for TransCanada’s Keystone XL pipeline (in order to avoid Nebraska’s environmentally-sensitive Sandhills and underlying agricultural aquifer) has led to speculation that Canada should shift its balance of trade from the U.S. to Asia. Certain segments of our foreign policy community have been salivating over the Chinese market, often as an
READ MORETaiwan and the UNFCCC: A Modest Proposal
- Analysis
- November 14, 2011
The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), which entered force in 1994 and has been ratified by almost all countries, is the leading international institution working on climate change. The Conference of the Parties (COP) supervises implementation of the UNFCCC. To date, the Convention’s major achievement is the 1997 Kyoto Protocol to limit
READ MORE
Taiwan’s Presidential Candidates and their Indigenous Platforms
- Analysis
- November 7, 2011
This essay first appeared on the Taiwan 2012 blog. Indigenous people, accounting for about 2% of Taiwan’s population, are unlikely to influence the 2012 presidential election outcomes. Nonetheless, the relative success of the candidates in indigenous communities may influence elections for the Legislative Yuan, which has a quota of six indigenous legislators. The way in
READ MORECanada and UNDRIP: Moving Forward on Indigenous Diplomacy
- Analysis
- November 3, 2011
The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) was adopted by the General Assembly on September 13, 2007, with 144 states in favour, 11 abstentions, and 4 votes against. Canada, like Australia, New Zealand, and the United States, originally voted against UNDRIP, but eventually changed its policy. In the March 2010 Speech
READ MORE100 Years of the Republic of China: Reason to Celebrate
- Analysis
- October 12, 2011
October 10, 2011, marks the centennial anniversary of the Hsinhai Revolution and the subsequent establishment of the Republic of China (ROC). The revolution’s political philosophy, developed by Dr. Sun Yat-sen, was the “Three Principles of the People.” Principles of minzu (nationalism, “government of the people”), minquan (democracy, “government by the people”) and minsheng (peoples’ livelihood,
READ MORE