China rejected the core of President Joe Biden’s message to Chinese President Xi Jinping about U.S. policy regarding Taiwan, condemning the federal law that underpins U.S.-Taiwan relations as an “illegal” document.
“The so-called ‘Taiwan Relations Act’ cited by the U.S. side gravely violates the one-China principle and the three China-US Joint Communiqués and essentially places domestic law above international obligations,” said Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian. “It is illegal, null and void.”
Zhao resumed the rhetorical contest over Taiwan just days after a high-profile virtual summit between Biden and Xi, which Chinese officials touted for its “great, far-reaching significance to the development of China-U.S. relations.” Yet U.S. officials underscored that the two sides did not establish any “guardrails” around Taiwan despite Biden’s desire to minimize the risk of conflict, leaving open U.S. and allied efforts to fortify Taiwan’s security and diplomatic stature.
“I don’t think the meeting, virtual meeting, was meant to actually resolve any of these issues, and I don’t think it did resolve any of these issues,” the American Enterprise Institute’s Zack Cooper said. “It doesn’t surprise me that the public statements are just as nasty as they were before hand … There was a lot of talk about managing the conflict and the competition, but it didn’t actually put in place any steps to do so. So I don’t think it would have turned the temperature down yet.”
U.S. officials remained uneasy, not only about the traditional threats to Taiwan’s security, but also the growing range of cyberattacks.
“Under the Taiwan Relations Act, we ensure that Taiwan can maintain sufficient self-defense, including in cyber,” White House deputy national security adviser Anne Neuberger told reporters in Tokyo this week, drawing Zhao’s protest.
Neuberger’s visit to Japan coincided with the unveiling of 64 F-16V fighter jets in Taiwan following retrofits that made the warplanes the most advanced version of the Fighting Falcons — a rollout that Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen hailed as not only a military improvement but a valuable symbol.
“As long as we continue to uphold the shared values of democracy and freedom, more like-minded countries will definitely join and stand with us in the same line,” she said.
Taiwanese diplomats enjoyed another victory in Europe with the opening of a new office in Lithuania. The Baltic state is not establishing formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan, but the establishment of a de facto embassy is still a milestone for Taipei’s relationship with a member of NATO and the European Union.
“The Taiwanese Representative Office in [Lithuania] is open & ready to expand exchanges between [Taiwan] & the [EU] member state,” Taiwan’s foreign ministry wrote on Twitter. “We’re deeply grateful for the support of [the Lithuanian government] & friends worldwide who backed our countries in making this great day possible.”
The Taiwanese Representative Office in #Lithuania?? is open & ready to expand exchanges between #Taiwan?? & the #EU?? member state. We’re deeply grateful for the support of @LithuanianGovt & friends worldwide who backed our countries in making this great day possible. Thank you! pic.twitter.com/O2bUxWHTwb
— 外交部 Ministry of Foreign Affairs, ROC (Taiwan) ?? (@MOFA_Taiwan) November 18, 2021
Beijing responded to the decision to allow that outpost to open by recalling the Chinese ambassador from Vilnius and imposing a variety of economic penalties on Lithuania.
“It’s like the classic Chinese saying: ‘Killing a chicken to scare the monkey,'” a senior EU diplomat in China told Politico. “Beijing is sending a message that whoever follows Lithuania’s example, of daring to stand up to it, will face severe consequences. And such a message is best tested on a smaller country.”
Chinese officials have used similar tactics in a series of recent disputes with Australia, but Canberra thinks that Lithuania’s course of action shows that such a heavy-handed approach has backfired for the communist regime.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
“So the economic coercion perhaps has not had the effect some people expected, but what it has done is send a signal to other countries about how they could be in the sights if they’re not careful,” Australian Ambassador to the United States Arthur Sinodinos told reporters this week in Washington. “And interestingly, rather than make countries more risk averse, I think it’s made countries sort of realize that actually, there’s a line to be drawn here.”
