And it will bring closer the day when Taiwan's people fall willingly back, as China sees it, into the warm embrace of the motherland and "reunify".This cunning plan does not seem to be working.
Rather than make the concessions needed to reunify the island, Greek-and Turkish-Cypriots seem condemned to mutual suspicion and a claustrophobic life in their respective ethnic ghettos.
THE idea of shutting up Greek, Turkish and Cypriot leaders in a Swiss ski resort to get them to agree to reunify Cyprus smacked of desperation.
To limit any political damage from the DPP's referendum, the KMT has proposed one of its own, to ask whether Taiwan should use "pragmatic and flexible strategies" to rejoin international bodies such as the UN.China has never renounced what it says is its right to "reunify" Taiwan by force, and in 2005 enshrined this in an "Anti-Secession Law".
As Soviet foreign minister, Edward Shevardnadze says he helped "end the cold war, liberate Europe, reunify Germany and democratise the former Soviet space".
And China, which has never renounced what it says is its right to "reunify" Taiwan by force, feels just as bound to protest when arms deals go through.
Most Europeans were cross that the (Greek-Cypriot) republic happily joined the EU in May 2004 despite a week earlier voting down the United Nations' Annan plan to reunify the island (the Turkish Cypriots voted in favour).
The best long-term plan for its economy would be a deal with the Turkish-Cypriots to reunify the island, which would boost tourism and GDP.More broadly, Cyprus's tragicomedy should prompt Europe's leaders to get a move on.
There is evidence that both Turkish and Greek Cypriots would like to reunify the island and would do so left to their own devices.I wish there were evidence that Turkish and Greek Cypriots would do a deal if left alone: I think the recent elections in Northern Cyprus, at which a nationalist hardliner defeated the more moderate Mehmet Talat, point in another direction.
One of Europe's greatest feats in the past 20 years was peacefully to reunify the continent after the end of the Soviet empire.
Having failed to get the leaders of Cyprus's two communities to agree a plan to reunify the Mediterranean island by a February 28th deadline, the United Nations is giving them one last chance.
