Greg Baker/AFP
The leaders of countries around the world have extensive influence both within their own country as well as with other less stable countries. So, when the president of Panama made the move to cut diplomatic ties with Taiwan in favor of ties with China, the world took notice (Reuters, 2017). The change in Panama’s stance on its alliance leads to the question of why the Latin American country, just north of Colombia changed its tune. Typically, a community-oriented culture, Panama has succeeded in upsetting the synergy not only between its self and Taiwan but furthering the upset in the synergy between Taiwan and China. For a country in which community and relationships are so important, was Panama concerned with its relationships between its self and these Asian nations, or within its own community?
Relations between Taiwan and China have been strained since the Chinese civil war which ended in 1949. The communist party, People’s Republic of China, took control of the Chinese mainland, pushing the Republic of China to the island now known as Taiwan (Diffen, n.d.). Since then the relations between the island nation and mainland China have been cordial but strained at times. Taiwan insists it is its own independent nation, and China insists Taiwan is a part of China (Reuters, 2017).
Only in the past decade has Panama begun to create stability financially through mainly infrastructure and export expansion (World Bank, n.d.). Best known for the Panama Canal, Panama expanded the canal in a nearly 10-year project that opened in 2016 amongst concerns over decreases in the shipping trade, water levels, and ability of ship captains to maneuver through the new canal (Kahn, 2016). Still, Panama persevered.
“Cultures with high-synergy tend to be highly co-operative, community-oriented, and have the good of all in mind. Typically, these societies are collectivist in nature” (PSUWC, 2017). Panama, along with other Central American countries have been attempting to create both political and economic synergy amongst themselves with CAFTA (Central American Free Trade Agreement) through decreasing tariffs on exports and attempting to bring the countries together to build their economic and political stability (Moran, Abramson, Moran, 2014).
With the promise of more economic stability and a culture that chooses community over all else, it is no wonder, that with countries around the world breaking ties with Taiwan, Panama would be the next to do so. To create a stronger country through it’s newly formed ties with China, Panama is in a better position to lead Central America into a new age marked by economic and political stability for those within its own community through ties to a country like China with a strong economy. When it comes down to it, Panama was looking out for its own country as well as Central America in this move that may have appeared to some to be making a political statement.
References:
Diffen (n.d.) People’s Republic Of China vs. Republic Of China. Retrieved from http://www.diffen.com/difference/People%27s_Republic_Of_China_vs_Republic_Of_China
Kahn, C. (2016) The $5 Billion Panama Canal Expansion Opens Sunday, Amidst Shipping Concerns. Retrieved from http://www.npr.org/2016/06/25/483523910/the-5-billion-panama-canal-expansion-opens-sunday-amidst-shipping-concerns
Moran, R., Abramson, N., Moran, S. (2014) Managing Cultural Differences. New York, NY: Routledge
PSUWC (2017) Lesson 06: Cultural Synergy. Retrieved from https://psu.instructure.com/courses/1867265/modules/items/22824740
Reuters (2017) Panama’s president says switching China ties not ‘checkbook diplomacy’. Retrieved from https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-panama-taiwan/panamas-president-says-switching-china-ties-not-checkbook-diplomacy-idUSKCN1BU03V
Reuters (2017) China Says Taiwan Not a Country, Taiwan Says China Needs Reality Check. Retrieved from https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2017-09-27/china-says-taiwan-not-a-country-taiwan-says-china-needs-reality-check
World Bank (n.d.) World Bank in Panama. Retrieved from http://www.worldbank.org/en/country/panama/overview#1
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