Richard Bush in his article in The Washington Times (September 8, 2010) says "Taiwan faces growing threat."
Bush considers that China's military strength threatens Taiwan:
First, the number of PLA cruise missiles is growing - perhaps by 100 in the past year. (The Defense Department's estimate of existing missiles is between 200 and 500.) Second, China's ability to frustrate U.S. intervention to defend Taiwan increases apace. Third, the ballistic missiles themselves are becoming more accurate and have more effective munitions. Even if the number of missiles has remained constant, the damage they can do to Taiwan's command and control, airfields, ports and other infrastructure is increasing. The scale of the potential damage is what is important to Taiwan's security, not the precise number of missiles.
He suggests:
First, Taiwan needs to continue to strengthen its deterrence.
Second, the United States should continue to sell arms to Taiwan to help it build that deterrence and reduce the island's sense of vulnerability.
Third, China should examine the counterproductive effect of its military buildup. Increasing Taiwan's sense of vulnerability will not win the hearts and minds of Taiwan's people. It betrays a lack of confidence in the good sense of Taiwan's voters. China only hurts its cause by acting in ways that lead Taiwanese citizens to vote on the basis of their fears rather than their hopes.
Richard Bush is a senior fellow and director of the Center for Northeast Asian Policy Studies at the Brookings Institution.