The Taiwan stand-off between the island, China, and the U.S. has been a simmering point of tension for decades, but with anti-China rhetoric ratcheting up in the West, and bolder American overtures towards Taiwan’s elected leaders, the potential for open conflict seems more and more likely.

The United States is at a three-way crossroads. It must decide whether to defend Taiwan, abandon Taiwan or destroy Taiwan. Will the U.S. risk being dragged into a war as it continues to use Taiwan to contain China’s progress? The clock is ticking.

Washington’s repeated provocations — both military and political — have made any recovery of stable relations with China difficult. If the United States fails to comprehend the serious nature of the Taiwan question, war will likely result.

AUKUS has laid out a plan for Australia to acquire its own SSN fleet. While the buildup of subs will take several years, submarine basing access and easing of constraints on the transfer of submarine parts and technologies to allies and partners mean that the program’s impact can be felt sooner in the Indo-Pacific, including on the Taiwan Straits hotspot.

The U.S. military said on Wednesday it sent a Navy warship through the Taiwan Strait, which separates Taiwan from China, a move likely to anger China during a period of tense relations between Washington and Beijing.

The Pentagon increases the frequency of movement through the Taiwan Strait despite opposition from China.

A French warship passed through the strategic Taiwan Strait this month, U.S. officials told Reuters, a rare voyage by a vessel of a European country that is likely to be welcomed by Washington but increase tensions with Beijing.

The United States sent Navy and Coast Guard ships through the Taiwan Strait on Sunday, the military said, as the United States increases the frequency of movement through the strategic waterway despite opposition from China.

Policies outlive presidents’ terms because they are in America’s own interests. Trump’s personal style has proved to work well in appealing to voters he needed to get him elected this year. But it will not work that well in appealing to the world when he is in the White House. We must hope that he works to grasp the subtleties of international relations more quickly than his spontaneous style suggests is likely.

Consolidation and development of KMT-CPC ties and stability of forces recognizing the 1992 Consensus within KMT are critical for cross-Strait relations to enjoy peace and continuity. It remains to be seen whether Hu’s commitment to a one-China policy can unify her party now that it’s out of power in Taiwan.