Poll of the Day > Should China invade Taiwan, does the US have an obligation to help defend?

(+) Yeah! (+)

It's pretty obvious to everyone that the US has more or less botched any attempts to modernize Afghanistan. With that in mind, does the US have an obligation to assist Taiwan if China were to invade?

Is the US capable of even defending Taiwan from invasion?

Does the US even want to get involved with more foreign affairs???

We've already abandoned our allies in Afghanistan, what's stopping us from just abandoning those in Taiwan?????

---

joemodda posted...

Is the US capable of even defending Taiwan from invasion?

https://nypost.com/2021/03/11/us-war-games-over-china-threat-warn-of-likely-defeat-report/

Judging by the results of a wargame back in March, the US would get their butts kicked

---

I dont know enough about this to have an informed opinion

I think we should stay out of wars unless there is a very important reason for us to get involved. We make a lot of things worse sometimes even if we think we are trying to help.

---

JixHedgehog posted...

https://nypost.com/2021/03/11/us-war-games-over-china-threat-warn-of-likely-defeat-report/

"Chinese biological-weapon attack"

I wonder why that isn't a MAD redline. Biological weapons attacks are potentially as devastating as nuclear.

joemodda posted...

It's pretty obvious to everyone that the US has more or less botched any attempts to modernize Afghanistan. With that in mind, does the US have an obligation to assist Taiwan if China were to invade?

What do those two things have to do with each other? "I had a hard time building my IKEA furniture and just threw it away. With that in mind, should I buy a car?" Complete non sequitur.

In any case, Carter abrogated the Sino-American Mutual Defense Treaty in 1980 so the US no longer has a legal obligation to defend Taiwan. However, it would be in everyone's best interest for them to do so were it to happen.

The Afghanistan comparison is bad because not only did the US stick with it for 20 years (and trillions of dollars) but Afghanistan was also not a high value ally. It was barely functional before the US invaded and is much the same now. Taiwan is a highly functional democracy and an important regional ally (even if its technically an informal one). China having unfettered access to Taiwan's air and sea-space would put immense pressure on Japan and other allies and in the event of hostilities (which there would be if it were overtaken through force) could basically cut off all access to Asia and block Asian trade.

China doesn't want to have to attack Taiwan because they would have to almost completely destroy the island to overtake it without massive casualties. Taiwan can't defeat China's entire military but through high quality military assets and very defensible geography it would be like punching a bear trap for China. The idea for Taiwan being to hopefully hold out long enough for the US (and possibly Japan) to come to the rescue.

It's a scenario that will never happen and would probably lead to World War 3.
Developed countries do not go to war with each other unless it's by proxy in the 2nd/3rd world.

---

So, I was reading about the chip shortage, and apparently Taiwan makes like 92% of them for the entire world. Biden's trying to move Mfg. back here, but that will take years. Needless to say since literally everything has a computer in it these days, this is a massive disaster waiting to happen and we did it to our selves by allowing so much off-shoring.

As for the poll question, yes. I think we should defend them. But man is that a dire prospect. Like the above poster said, it'd likely lead to WW3...
Best hope is if we stand firm on it, China backs down since they can "defeat" us economically over time and don't need to risk that w/ a war.

SomeUsername529 posted...

What do those two things have to do with each other? "I had a hard time building my IKEA furniture and just threw it away. With that in mind, should I buy a car?" Complete non sequitur.

also this

But Taiwan is China, you can't invade yourself :b

---

if china invades taiwan, ww3 would begin.

---

The US has an obligation to defend Taiwan from China, also Japan, no exceptions.
---

joemodda posted...

Does the US have an obligation to assist Taiwan if China were to invade?

The US doesn't even legally acknowledge that Taiwan exists for fear of hurting China's feelings. The odds of us going to war for them are pretty much nil.

But perhaps Guatamala, Paraguay, Haiti, and the Pope will send troops to save Taiwan if China ever decides to invade.
---

It wouldn't be worth risking potential nuclear war over. Plus even if you are just talking conventional weapons, fighting so near China gives them a massive advantage. It would be pretty easy to scuttle the US aircraft carriers with cruise missiles, then the US forces would be absolutely fucked. It would be a major fiasco.

---

JixHedgehog posted...

https://nypost.com/2021/03/11/us-war-games-over-china-threat-warn-of-likely-defeat-report/

Judging by the results of a wargame back in March, the US would get their butts kicked

They literally only put these out there to convince the gov to give them more money. If they actually thought we would lose, why would they provide that information to the world?

---

Hop103 posted...

The US has an obligation to defend Taiwan from China, also Japan, no exceptions.

no obligation. we aren't the world police
---

Because there are no other forms of pressure that China could exert on Taiwan to make to buckle, short of a massive, devastating invasion?

---

Krazy_Kirby posted...

no obligation. we aren't the world police

We still are the world police, it's just that public approval of the US being the world police is at an all time low.
---

Criminalt posted...

Because there are no other forms of pressure that China could exert on Taiwan to make to buckle, short of a massive, devastating invasion?

They've made it pretty blatantly clear they intend to do a massive, devastating, invasion. Heck, following Biden's withdraw they were basically saying 'look Taiwan. The U.S. can't defend you so we can either take you over peacefully or crush you underfoot with our military might'.

---

In the first world, the goal is to keep the status quo. Thinking about these what if scenarios are pretty silly.

---

Criminalt posted...

Because there are no other forms of pressure that China could exert on Taiwan to make to buckle, short of a massive, devastating invasion?

They have been trying the diplomatic solution to put pressure on Taiwan for many years, but it hasn't worked. Ultimately, keeping Taiwan around is pretty dangerous for China, since they have a strong claim over China and therefore are a rival to power. While PR has largely stopped them from invasion, the success of Hong Kong most likely showed China that they can be aggressive and brutal to at least people around their own region and still not endanger foreign relations, so to me an attack on Taiwan is inevitable.

---

US should sit back and relax.

---

Invade Taiwan for what reason and hasn't the US learned anything from the Afghanistan fiasco.

---

I'm sure if the ccp thought they could take Taiwan without the US interfering they would have already

---