Ukrainians are much more willing to defend themselves than Taiwanese and such an attitude will pose a significant threat to Taiwan’s future and independence in event of a Chinese invasion, according to noted US political scientist Francis Fukuyama.

“I think one of the differences between Taiwan and Ukraine is that, in my perception, the Ukrainians are much more willing to fight for themselves than Taiwanese people, and that poses a really big threat to Taiwan’s future and independence,” he said.

Pointing to the widespread belief among Taiwanese that US would come to their rescue in event of a possible Chinese invasion, Fukuyama said that it would only happen if Taiwanese are willing to fight for themselves. The sacrifices Taiwanese are willing to make will be decisive in determining the outcome, he added

Fukuyama was delivering a keynote on “Threats to Liberalism and the Liberal World Order” in a virtual forum organised by the Taipei School of Economics and Political Science Foundation.

Fukuyama, a senior fellow at Stanford University’s Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, is best known for his 1992 book, “The End of History,” in which he struck a triumphant note that great ideological battles between East and West was effectively over with collapse of Soviet Union.

Fukuyama said that what happens in Ukraine will sets an important precedent for what will happen in East Asia. China is keenly observing how the US and other democracies respond, Fukuyama noted.

“The geopolitical challenge from China is bigger than that from Russia,” he said. “Chinese power is much more multidimensional, in terms of economic, political and increasingly in military powers.”

Since the rise of Chinese President Xi Jinping , China is evolving from an authoritarian to a totalitarian state, with its social credit system being the world’s most advanced surveillance network for the purpose of social control, he said.

Urging Taiwan to rethink its defense policy and reinstate mandatory military conscription, Fukuyama said that Chinese invasion of Taiwan, which was generally perceived as unthinkable even few months back, is now a distinct possibility.