Making Sense of the Conflict between Mainland China and Taiwan

Abstract

The chapter outlines problems inhering in attempts to study People's Republic of China-Taiwan relations from conventional international relations & foreign policy analysis perspectives, & proposes that constructivism may offer modes for better theorizing & understanding the conflict, especially in terms of agency, structure, & identity. The effects of the Cold War, its conclusion, & the "one China" movement on China-Taiwan relations & their discourses are discussed, along with implications for US policymakers. K. Coddon