Face Off: China, the United States, and Taiwan's DemocratizationTaiwan's first presidential election, in 1996, sparked a Sino U. S. military showdown that resulted in the biggest show of U. S. naval force in East Asia since the Vietnam War. This book is the first to explore the origins and triangular dynamics of that historic confrontation. Analyzing the key decisions and misperceptions that led to the Taiwan Strait crisis, Garver warns that it may usher in a more confrontational era of Sino U. S. relations. China