Secretary of State Antony Blinken sent a U.S. ambassador to visit Taiwan for the first time since 1979, defying China’s “red line” regarding such contacts.
State Department engagement with the government in Taipei has been constrained since 1979, when the United States established diplomatic relations with the Chinese Communist regime in Beijing. The mainland government claims sovereignty over the island, which it has never controlled, and demands countries with diplomatic ties with Beijing sever their official contacts with the island democracy.
“We are committed to deepening ties with Taiwan,” State Department spokesman Ned Price told reporters Thursday. “It’s a critical economic and security partner of the United States, and that’s why we will continue to engage Taiwan, consistent with the long-standing One China policy.”
“We urge the U.S. side to fully recognize that the Taiwan question is highly sensitive,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said Monday. “It must stop any official interaction with Taiwan, refrain from sending any wrong signals to Taiwan independent forces, stop any attempt to cross the bottom line, and properly handle Taiwan-related issues with prudence, lest it should damage China-U.S. relations as well as peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.”
US AND JAPAN WARN CHINA NOT TO ATTACK TAIWAN
U.S. Ambassador John Hennessey-Niland, the top American diplomat in Palau, accompanied the Pacific island state’s president, Surangel Whipps Jr., to Taiwan on Sunday. Palau and Taiwan are opening a “travel bubble” corridor between their two countries, and U.S. officials emphasized the trilateral nature of such initiatives.
“The partnership between Taiwan, Palau, and the United States is not limited to public health or pandemic management,” the American Institute in Taiwan, which functions as the unofficial U.S. embassy on the island, said of the visit. “The United States, Taiwan, and Palau share a strong commitment to democracy, to a free and open Indo-Pacific, and to advancing the peace and prosperity of the region.”
Such meetings are likely to continue and involve other governments when possible, to judge from other statements this week by U.S. officials.
“We’re also working to enlarge Taiwan’s ability to interact with the international community in a way that reflects Taiwan’s potential contributions,” U.S. Charge d’Affaires Mike Goldman, the top American diplomat in Australia pending the absence of a Senate-confirmed ambassador, said in a newly released Australian National University National Security College podcast.
Those efforts have intensified during the pandemic, particularly following China’s successful insistence that Taiwan remain barred from participating in World Health Assembly discussions of the emerging public health crisis — an “appalling” exclusion, Goldman said.
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“We’re also committed to supporting Taiwan’s ability to have its legitimate voice heard in international fora,” the diplomat said.
