US President Joe Biden said on Monday his government is willing to use force to defend Taiwan if the island is occupied by China.
At a news conference in Tokyo with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, the Democrat said the United States is “determined to respect the one-China policy, but that doesn’t mean China can take Taiwan by force.”
When asked by a reporter if he could join militarily to defend Taiwan despite not being involved in the conflict in Ukraine, Biden said he was ready to support the island. “Yes, that’s our commitment,” he said.
The American also stressed that “he expects this will not happen”, but that Beijing “flirts with danger” by flying over the area during military exercises.
According to Kishida, “the situation in the Taiwan Strait must not change” and thus both reiterate the “importance of maintaining international order”. The Japanese prime minister said, “In Asia, we are against forced change of any situation. Peace and stability must be maintained.”
Biden also noted that he is “considering” removing some of the trade tariffs that have been imposed on China and that these have not been implemented by his government. “We haven’t imposed any of these tariffs,” the Democrat replied, about the possibility of canceling the measures to cool the rising inflation dynamics.
In response to the US president, China said it was willing to defend its national interests in Taiwan.
“No one should underestimate the determined determination of the Chinese people, their determination, will and strong ability to defend their national sovereignty and territorial integrity,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said.
The Chinese government expressed “strong dissatisfaction and fierce opposition to the statements” that Biden made at a joint press conference with the Japanese prime minister at the end of his summit.
The spokesperson said, “The Taiwan issue concerns only China’s internal affairs, and therefore foreign powers cannot be allowed to interfere,” stressing that Beijing will “take decisive measures to protect its sovereignty and security interests in matters affecting vital interests.” In terms of sovereignty and territorial integrity, China has no room for concessions or concessions”.
According to Zhu Fenglian, spokesman for the Chinese government’s Taiwan Affairs Department, the United States is playing with fire and will burn, using Taiwan to control China.
In the midst of the debate, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin announced that “US policy on China has not changed”, and Biden simply stressed his “commitment to provide Taiwan with the tools for self-defense”.
source: Noticias
