The Business Relationship Between Taiwan and China from the Development and Economic Perspective

Taiwan has achieved impressive economic growth from an agricultural state to produce the globes most advanced semiconductors. No less dynamic and exciting are the political developments on the island. Once a colony under the Dutch, Chinese and Japanese flags, the island has become quasi-autonomous. The abolition of martial law and the transformation into one of the world's most democratic nations are impressive. High education levels, an exceptionally well handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, and a non-corrupt government pushing future technology and supporting Taiwan's democratic path make Taiwan an attractive investment target. One look at the facts is enough to see that the Taiwanese are happy with their current system and enjoy great space. One country and two systems are not a good solution for Taiwan politically and economically. In principle, Taiwan has only one option: keep the status quo, minimize provocations against China, and hope for a diplomatic and acceptable outcome to the situation. At the same time, the government must promote itself in the free world and conclude free trade and other mutual exchange agreements.

Decoding Political Trust in China: A Machine Learning Analysis

Survey results inflate political trust in China if the observed trust in the central government is mistaken for the latent trust in the Centre. The target of trust in the country is the Centre, which is ultimately the top leader. The critical issue domain for assessing the Centre's trustworthiness is policy implementation rather than policymaking. The Centre's trustworthiness has two dimensions: commitment to good governance and the capacity to discipline local officials. Observed trust in the central government indicates trust in the Centre's commitment, while observed trust in the local government reflects confidence in the Centre's capacity. A machine learning analysis of a national survey reveals how much conventional reading overestimates political trust. At first glance, 85 per cent of the respondents trust the central government. Upon further inspection, 18 per cent have total trust in the Centre, 34 per cent have partial trust and 33 per cent are sceptical.