US President Joe Biden has said that US forces will defend Taiwan in the event of a Chinese invasion, and his most blunt statement on the matter was an angry response from China, saying it sent the wrong signal to those who wanted an independent Taiwan.
When asked in a CBS 60 Minutes interview broadcast on Sunday whether US forces would defend the democratically governed island that China claims, he replied, “Yes, if it were truly an unprecedented attack.”
When asked if he meant that, unlike Ukraine, US forces – American men and women – would defend Taiwan in the event of a Chinese invasion, Biden replied “Yes”.
The CBS interview was the most recent when Biden went beyond long-standing US policy, but his statement was more explicit than his predecessors about deploying US troops to defend the island.
The US has long adhered to a policy of “strategic uncertainty” and has not clarified whether it will respond militarily to an attack on Taiwan.
A White House spokesperson said US policy towards Taiwan has not changed.
“The president has said this before, including in Tokyo earlier this year. He also made it clear that our policy on Taiwan has not changed. That remains true,” the spokesperson said.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Mao Ning said at a regular briefing in Beijing that Biden’s comments sent a “gravely false signal” to separatist forces for Taiwan’s independence.
China is “absolutely dissatisfied and determinedly opposed” to Biden’s comments and has filed a formal complaint about it, adding that China reserves the right to take all necessary measures to combat separatism.
Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs thanked Biden for reaffirming the US government’s “strong security commitment to Taiwan.”
Taiwan will continue to strengthen its self-defense capabilities and deepen the close security partnership between Taiwan and the United States, the Taiwanese ministry said in a statement.
The CBS interview with Biden was done last week. The President is in England for Queen Elizabeth’s funeral on Monday.
source: Noticias
