Just within the past few weeks, China has made military threats against Taiwan and threatened military action against the United States if we defend Taiwan....Additionally, Beijing has exported weapons of mass destruction to Iran and North Korea, in violation of treaty commitments.

CENTERFORSECURITYPOLICY: Center For Security Policy

Reports from Hong Kong claim that at these meetings military action against Taiwan was ruled out.

ECONOMIST: Taiwan and China

Politically, any military action against Taiwan could well prove riskier for China than doing nothing.

ECONOMIST: The dragon next door | The

John McCain echoed the Clinton administration's warnings against any hostile action against Taiwan.

CENTERFORSECURITYPOLICY: Center For Security Policy

There was no mention of any clauses that would commit China to using force in response to any clearly specified action by Taiwan.

ECONOMIST: China

The officials argue, plausibly, that the leaders at Beidaihe are in no mood to take drastic action over Taiwan, so beset are they with challenges at home.

ECONOMIST: Time for chat about Taiwan?

Taiwan's famously lavish propaganda machine is already swinging into action to bring America and the rest of the world round to Taiwan's point of view.

ECONOMIST: Taiwan��s high-stakes game

However, Taiwan does have what it calls a "plan of action" that requires the bodies of the sharks the fins came from to be accounted for and not dumped into the sea.

CNN: Shark fin soup alters an ecosystem

Given such corporate action, it may not be a surprise that nimble Taiwan has suffered the least from the region's turmoil.

CNN: THE REAL WORK BEGINS

They looked the other way when China proliferated nuclear weapons material to Pakistan and Iran, refused to take action when Chinese spies stole military secrets from US nuclear laboratories, and declined to reassure Taiwan that it can count on US support if it is attacked or invaded by Beijing.

CENTERFORSECURITYPOLICY: Did Clinton Want to Lose the CTBT?