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President Joe Biden this week appeared to undermine Washington’s stance on “strategic ambiguity” over the island by saying the United States would defend Taiwan if China invaded.
His comments came when a 60 Minutes correspondent asked the president whether U.S. forces would defend Taiwan in an interview aired Sunday night.
Biden replied, “If there was a real, unprecedented attack.”
The president went on to emphasize his administration’s support for the “One China” policy of recognizing the government in Beijing while acknowledging unofficial ties with Taiwan.
Biden said Sunday, “Taiwan is making its own decisions about independence. We are not moving. We are not encouraging their independence. We are not and that is their decision.” It is.”
Tensions between China and the US have escalated in recent weeks after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-California) visited Taiwan in early August.
The United States does not have a mutual defense treaty with Taiwan, but supplies weapons to the island. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Wednesday passed a bill giving Taiwan her $4.5 billion in defense spending over the next four years and designating Taiwan a non-NATO ally.
Pentagon official says it’s ‘just a matter of time’ before China triggers ‘major’ incidents in Indo-Pacific region
China’s foreign ministry spokesman Mao Ning this week criticized the new defense spending, saying “the root cause of the current tensions across the Taiwan Strait is that it challenges the one-China principle.” .
“I would like to emphasize that no country or individual should underestimate the strong determination and firm will of the Chinese government and people to safeguard sovereignty and territorial integrity and achieve national reunification,” he said.
This is not the first time Biden has said the United States will defend Taiwan if China invades it. The president said last October that the United States had a “commitment” to defend Taiwan, prompting Jen Psaki, a former White House press secretary, to recant his remarks.
“No change,” Psaki said in October. “The president has neither announced a change in our policy nor made a decision to change our policy.”
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The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Sunday night.