UK: US President Joe Biden said in a CBS 60 Minutes interview on Sunday that US troops would defend the island of Taiwan "if there is a truly unprecedented attack," angering China for sending "seriously wrong signals". Used to be. At a press conference on US presidential meetings at the United Nations, a senior administration official said neither French President Emmanuel Macron nor UK Prime Minister Liz Truss had any concerns about Joe Biden's recent comments about Taiwan. expressed.
President Biden spoke to his French and British counterparts about the situation in Taiwan on the sidelines of the 77th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
The official said that in response to press inquiries, there have been no talks about a joint or joint training exercise with Taiwan. In the event of an "unprecedented attack", US President Joe Biden previously vowed that US forces would defend Taiwan.
Since 1949, when it broke away from the mainland during a civil war that saw the Communist Party seize power, the island has been governed separately from mainland China. Beijing has held several rounds of talks with the island's government over the years as part of its official policy, which calls for the peaceful reunification of Taiwan with Mainland China. But Taipei continues to reject Beijing's "one country, two systems" plan. On Sunday, during his first CBS 60 Minutes interview as president, Joe Biden was asked about the Taiwan problem. Additionally, Joe Biden confirmed in the interview that he and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping support the "one-China" policy, adding that Taiwan determines its level of independence.
The White House responded quickly to the comment, saying that the US position on Taiwan has not changed. “The president has made this claim before, most recently in Tokyo earlier this year. He also made it clear at the time that our policy toward Taiwan has not changed. It is still accurate, a spokesperson later clarified. . In a joint news conference with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on May 23, Biden also appeared to push the limits of the "strategic ambiguity" of US policy toward the self-governing island. When asked whether the United States would defend Taiwan in the event of an attack, he replied, "Yes, that is the commitment." added it:
According to an aide at the time, the president's statement did not change the United States' long-standing position on Taiwan.
Signal that is "severely wrong"
China expressed its "strong dissatisfaction" and "strong opposition" to the recent comments made by Biden, claiming they sent a "seriously wrong signal" to Taiwan. According to Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Mao Ning, Beijing had made a formal complaint about the statement.
In 1979, the US formally recognized the Communist government of mainland China and later withdrew its recognition of Taiwan. During a virtual meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in November 2021, US President Joe Biden reaffirmed Washington's commitment to a "one-China policy, guided by the Taiwan Relations Act (TRA), three joint communiqués and six assurances" . The TRA also created the "strategic ambiguity" doctrine, which the US has used to avoid saying whether it will defend Taiwan militarily. While acknowledging Beijing's claim that Taiwan is part of the People's Republic, Washington has never formally acknowledged Beijing's ownership of the island and continues to support Taiwan's informal independence from Beijing.
The Chinese government has been pleading with the US for years to stay out of its internal affairs. Tensions between Beijing and Washington escalated after US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi controversially visited Taipei in early August. Beijing issued a warning at the time, saying the visit to Taiwan was "provocative" and was actively "pushing the envelope on China's red lines."
Following the incident, Beijing began extensive military exercises in the Taiwan Strait. China also warned that it would continue to take firm and strong measures to resolutely defend Chinese sovereignty and security interests and demanded that the United States end military contact with Taiwan to prevent further tensions in the region.
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