After a series of threats from Chinese state-affiliated media, the Biden administration announced Tuesday the United States intends to help Taiwan defend itself from Chinese military activity.
The Global Times, a state-run Chinese newspaper, published an editorial piece Monday warning Taiwan the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan is “an omen of Taiwan’s future fate.”
The article, published without an author’s name, speculated what will happen “once a war breaks out in the Straits,” directly referencing conflict with the disputed island democracy.
“From what happened in Afghanistan, they should perceive that once a war breaks out in the Straits, the island’s defense will collapse in hours and the US military won’t come to help,” the editorial stated. “As a result, the DPP authorities will quickly surrender, while some high-level officials may flee by plane.”
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“How Washington abandoned the Kabul regime particularly shocked some in Asia, including the island of Taiwan,” the Global Times stated in the piece. “Taiwan is the region that relies on the protection of the US the most in Asia, and the island’s Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities have made Taiwan go further and further down this abnormal path.”
The Biden administration shot back on Tuesday.
A senior official told Fox News the U.S. has an “abiding interest in peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait. We consider this central to the security and stability of the broader Indo-Pacific region. Events elsewhere in the world are not going to change this enduring interest.”
“It’s also unfortunate that PRC’s state media is exploiting the human suffering in Afghanistan to take shots at the United States. That’s not what responsible powers do,” said the official. “We will uphold our commitment under [the 1979 Taiwan Relations Act], we will continue to support Taiwan’s self-defense, and we will continue to oppose any unilateral changes to the status quo.”
#环球时报Editorial: From what happened in Afghanistan, those in Taiwan should perceive that once a war breaks out in the Straits, the island’s defense will collapse in hours and US military won’t come to help. As a result, the DPP will quickly surrender. https://t.co/ZUrZmcsSWf pic.twitter.com/wFG4vrHbTo
— Global Times (@globaltimesnews) August 16, 2021
“Our message is very clear. We stand by, as is outlined in the Taiwan relations agreement (sic), by individuals in Taiwan,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said. “We stand by partners around the world who are subject to this kind of propaganda that Russia and China are projecting. And we’re going to continue to deliver on those words with actions.”
She added: “Our objective in Afghanistan is to deliver also on what the president promised, which is to not put the men and women who served our country bravely over the past 20 years in harm’s way. Again, And that’s what we’ll also be projecting to them as well.”
The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs released a statement Tuesday, stating, “[Thirty-nine] years ago today, China and the US jointly published the August 17 Communiqué. The US side pledged that ‘it intends gradually to reduce its sale of arms to Taiwan, leading, over a period of time, to a final resolution.'”
The U.S. holds a “One-China Policy,” which recognizes there is only one China, the People’s Republic of China, and its government lays claim to the island of Taiwan. However, the U.S. remains intentionally coy toward international relations with the two, continuing to sell weapons and build relationships with Taiwan while simultaneously encouraging reunification on paper.
The U.S. has largely failed to follow up on its agreement in the early 1980s to reduce weapon sales to Taiwan — something China openly resents.
“No one should underestimate the strong determination, firm will & strong capability of the Chinese people to safeguard national sovereignty & territorial integrity,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs continued. “China urges the US to stop official contacts & military ties with Taiwan, stop arms sales to Taiwan, and reject the ‘Taiwan independence’ separatist forces and their separatist activities.”
39 years ago today, China and the US jointly published the August 17 Communiqué. The US side made the pledge that “it intends gradually to reduce its sale of arms to Taiwan, leading, over a period of time, to a final resolution”. https://t.co/z5JSZoibki
— Spokesperson发言人办公室 (@MFA_China) August 17, 2021
In a separate Tuesday statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs repeated calls for the U.S. to abandon all support for Taiwan.
“The meaning of the one-China principle is clear and brooks no distortion. When following the one-China policy, one must strictly abide by the one-China principle and sever all official exchanges in both overt & secretive ways with the Taiwan authorities,” the government ministry wrote.
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Chinese Embassy spokesman Liu Pengyu told the Washington Examiner that “the two statements made by the spokesperson of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs were on Lithuania’s decision to allow the Taiwan authorities to open a ‘representative office’ under the name of ‘Taiwan’ and the issue of US arms sales to Taiwan.”
He added: “The two relevant position [sic] has been expressed very clearly.”
The Washington Examiner reached out to the White House for comment but did not receive a response.
