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Photo by Tsun-hsu/AFP/Getty Images

Although Taiwan is a mere 40-some kilometres across the Taiwan Strait from mainland China, and has limited access to modern weapons, a full-scale Chinese invasion of the island would be far from a sure thing. The eastern shore of the island is rocky and deep — not a good place to land troops. The western shore, facing China, has a number of beaches that would enable China to land troops more easily, but any effort to attempt an outright landing would be at least as difficult as the Normandy invasion, with its thousands of ships and aircraft and over 150,000 soldiers.

Could China carry off such an enterprise? Certainly, but not without rivers of blood and widespread destruction of the island’s very modern infrastructure.

Besides, in today’s world, when cyber-attacks can shut down entire electrical systems with the hospitals, emergency services, rescue services and communications that go with it, why resort to physical assault? And that is precisely what China is now doing with its effort to win back control of Taiwan.

Could China carry off such an enterprise? Certainly, but not without rivers of blood and widespread destruction

Taiwan is a democracy. It has limited control over who owns news and internet systems. There is constant interaction between corporations and private citizens on both sides of the Taiwan Strait. Regular flights travel from Taipei’s international airport to Beijing, Shanghai and other major cities on mainland China. Taiwan has reduced its trade dependency on China from 40 per cent some 10 years ago to 30 per cent now, but the flow of people and ideas will always be heavy and with that flow comes the mainland’s siren refrain to join the People’s Republic with one nation and two systems.

Taiwan is in a constant, daily, struggle to preserve its independence. Canada has an obligation to help out as much as we can.

David J. Bercuson is a fellow of the Canadian Global Affairs Institute and director of the Centre for Military, Security and Strategic Studies at the University of Calgary.