Tsai must clarify cross-Straits position

On May 29, Tsai Ing-wen, chairwoman of Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), will begin a 12-day trip to the United States. The DPP candidate for Taiwan's 2016 leadership elections will meet with US government officials, lawmakers, scholars and others with an interest in East Asian affairs.

In February 2015, Tsai declared that "now is the time to build a new political culture with transparency." But her positions toward many of the most important issues of the day remain opaque and unclear, especially her plans for handling cross-Straits relations. This makes officials in Washington nervous.

The DPP's track record represents another concern. After the DPP came to power in 2000, the island's relations with both the Chinese mainland and the US deteriorated. The tensions may be traced to a series of "surprises" initiated by former Taiwan leader Chen Shui-bian. These "bombshells" included inflammatory statements about "Taiwan independence" and controversial calls for island-wide referendums and a new "Constitution". US officials viewed the moves as irresponsible, provocative and destabilizing. By late 2004, the media described Chen as President George W. Bush's "least favorite democratically elected leader" and Taiwan's media was rife with rumors that Bush had cursed him. That same year, political analysts claimed that "US-Taiwan relations are at their worst in the past 20 years". Relations continued on a downward spiral until 2008.