The deal was a coup for China, which had shifted its military focus away from a potential Soviet land invasion, and now wanted to defend territorial claims over Taiwan and parts of the South China Sea and East China Sea.

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Take, for instance, semiconductors, a business in which South Korea, Taiwan and Singapore are strong, but into which China is now aggressively moving.

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To abandon Taiwan now would bring out the worst in China, and lead the region's democracies to worry that America might be willing to let them swing too.

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Witness America's alliances with Japan and South Korea, its legal obligation to help Taiwan defend itself and its burgeoning friendships with China's rivals, notably India but also now Vietnam.

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Founded in 2007 and headquartered in Taipei, Taiwan, the company now has over 180 employees and offices in United States, Japan, Korea and China.

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On one side there is Vincent Siew, the new prime minister, Mr Lien (currently vice-president), many senior cabinet members and most of the media, who think that Taiwan's business interests in China are now so large that there are compelling reasons to talk.

ECONOMIST: Taiwan