Taiwan’s free meat and wine has been in short supply as of late, while China has been providing sumptuous banquets. It’s no wonder then that some have chosen to dine with China.

Costa Rica was the most recent “friend” to switch to Beijing’s dinner table. Costa Rican President and 1987 Noble Peace Prize Laureate Oscar Arias has acknowledged that the decision to go with Beijing was related to Costa Rica’s desire to bolster its economy, though he made no mention of any alleged special handouts from Beijing.

Arias added insult to injury when he was quoted in early June as saying that Taiwan does not give enough aid to its allies. The old expression, “With friends like these, who needs enemies?” would seem apt.

But to be fair to the remaining 24 diplomatic allies of the ROC, loyalty is not generally a serious consideration when factoring in decisions of the state. These countries recognize Taiwan for a reason, and — except perhaps in the case of the Vatican — the reason is financial aid, or simply put: money.

The Pacific Ocean island state of Tuvalu has a population of 10,441. That’s less than the population living in a single Taipei neighborhood. Another Pacific ROC “ally,” Nauru, boasts around 13,000 residents.

Vice President Annette Lu last week criticized the Costa Rican president while on an official visit to ROC allies in Central and South America, but perhaps she should have paid closer attention to what he actually said. “We are looking to strengthen commercial ties and attract investment,” said Arias. “China is the most successful emerging economy in the world and soon it will be the second strongest economy in the world after the United States.”

KMT legislators Joanna Lei and Kuo Su-chun late last month referred media to a report by ETToday.com, which claims the Chen administration has allocated US$848 million for 2007 to maintaining diplomatic ties with 24 nations. ETToday.com claimed also there is a “secret budget” for diplomatic activities that which might be as much as US$150 million.

Suffice it to say, Taiwan spends millions upon millions of U.S. dollars on maintaining “diplomatic ties” with nations like Tuvalu and Nauru. This would all be well and good if Taiwan was “the most successful emerging economy in the world, soon to be the second strongest economy in the world after the United States.” Unfortunately, we are not. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Taiwan may have had the cash to play the ally game, but those days are past.

Instead of squandering our remaining dignity arguing with tiny nations over subsidies and grants in order to get small stamps of diplomatic approval, it’s time Taiwan faced reality and began building international relationships based on more than meat and wine.

If this means losing all our “allies,” so be it. The millions, if not billions, of dollars would be much better spent on making Taiwan’s roads safer, aiding Taiwan’s aboriginals, building schools and a host of other domestic projects.

If Taiwan’s government quit making offers of aid the nation can’t afford and, at the end of the day, held on to just one or two allies, these friends will be friends in more than name alone, and when the meat and wine run low, they will stay our friends. Aren’t those the only friends worth having?

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