A Test of the “Rules-Based Order”: China’s Challenge to International Norms

China’s demand for the U.S. to “oppose” Taiwanese independence is more than just a bilateral issue; it is a direct challenge to the “rules-based international order” that the United States has championed since World War II. At its core, this order is based on the principle that sovereign disputes should be resolved peacefully and without coercion, a norm that Beijing’s move seeks to undermine.
The current U.S. policy of “strategic ambiguity” is a product of this order. It is a carefully constructed mechanism designed to prevent unilateral changes to the status quo, whether by a Taiwanese declaration of independence or a Chinese invasion. It creates space for a democratic society to flourish while managing a complex and dangerous geopolitical reality.
By demanding that the U.S. explicitly side with its claim, China is attempting to replace this nuanced, norm-based approach with a raw assertion of power politics. It is effectively saying that its historical claim and growing military might should override the principle of self-determination for the 23 million people of Taiwan.
The Trump administration’s response will therefore be seen as a test of its commitment to the very international order it leads. Acceding to China’s demand would signal that the U.S. is willing to accommodate a powerful authoritarian state’s efforts to rewrite international norms to suit its own expansionist ambitions.
This would have implications far beyond Taiwan. It would embolden other revisionist powers to challenge established borders and norms, from Eastern Europe to the South China Sea. A failure to uphold the principles of the rules-based order in the Taiwan Strait would risk eroding its legitimacy everywhere.