Tokyo and Washington
President Joe Biden said Monday that the United States would intervene militarily if China invaded Taiwan, saying the burden of protecting Taiwan is “even heavier” after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. It was one of the strongest presidential statements in support of home rule in decades.
Mr. Biden, at a news conference in Tokyo, said “yes” when asked if he was willing to get involved militarily to defend Taiwan if China were to invade. “That’s the commitment we made,” he added.
Biden, who is in the midst of a five-day visit to South Korea and Japan, also on Monday launched a new trade deal with 12 Indo-Pacific nations aimed at strengthening their economies.
On Taiwan, speaking alongside Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, Biden said any effort by China to use force against Taiwan “would just not be appropriate,” adding that it “will displace the entire region and be another action similar to what happened”. in Ukraine.”
The US president called the US-Japan alliance a “cornerstone of peace and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific” and thanked Japan for its “strong leadership” in confronting Russia.
The United States has traditionally avoided making such an explicit security guarantee to Taiwan, with which it no longer has a mutual defense treaty, instead maintaining a policy of “strategic ambiguity” about how far it would be willing to go if China invaded. The Taiwan Relations Act of 1979, which governs US relations with the island, does not require the United States to intervene militarily to defend Taiwan if China invades, but makes it US policy to ensure that Taiwan has the resources to defend itself and prevent any unilateral attack. change of status in Taiwan by Beijing.
Mr. Biden’s comments provoked a strong response from the mainland, which has claimed that Taiwan is a rogue province.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin expressed “strong discontent and resolute opposition” to Mr. Biden’s comments.
“China has no room for compromises or concessions on issues involving China’s core interests, such as sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
He added: “China will take firm measures to safeguard its sovereignty and security interests, and we will do as we say.”
A White House official said Biden’s comments did not reflect a change in policy.
Under the “one China” policy, the United States recognizes Beijing as the government of China and does not have diplomatic relations with Taiwan. However, the US maintains unofficial contacts, including a de facto embassy in Taipei, the capital, and supplies military equipment for the island’s defense.
Taipei applauded Mr. Biden’s comments, with Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Joanne Ou expressing “sincere welcome and gratitude” for the remarks.
“China’s challenge to the security of the Taiwan Strait has caused great concern in the international community,” said Ms. Ou. “Taiwan will continue to enhance its self-defense capabilities and deepen cooperation with the United States and Japan and other like-minded countries to jointly uphold the security of the Taiwan Strait and the rules-based international order, while promoting peace, stability, and prosperity. in the Indo-Pacific region.
Taiwan is left out of the Indo-Pacific trade pact
Biden’s comments came just before he formally launched a long-awaited Indo-Pacific trade pact that excludes Taiwan.
White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan confirmed on Sunday that Taiwan is not among the governments signed up to the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework, which is meant to allow the US to work more closely with economies. key Asian companies on issues such as supply chains, digital commerce. , clean energy and fight against corruption.
The nations joining the US in the pact are: Australia, Brunei, India, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. Together with the United States, they represent 40% of world GDP.
The countries said in a joint statement that the pact will help them collectively “future-proof our economies” after the fallout from the pandemic and the war in Ukraine.
“We look forward to deepening our economic partnership with Taiwan, including on high-tech issues, including the supply of semiconductors,” Mr. Sullivan said. “But we are pursuing that in the first instance on a bilateral basis.”
The framework is meant to set out Mr. Biden’s economic strategy for the region. Matthew Goodman, senior vice president for economics at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, suggested some Pacific signatories will be disappointed that the pact is not expected to include provisions for greater access to the US market.
“I think a lot of partners will look at that list and say: That’s a good list of issues. I’m happy to be involved,” said Mr. Goodman, a former director of international economics at the National Security Council during the administration of President Barack Obama. “But, you know, are we going to get any tangible benefit from participating in this framework?”
Beijing, anticipating the launch of the pact, has criticized the US effort.
“We hope they will build an open and inclusive circle of friends in Asia-Pacific, instead of exclusive cliques, and do more for peace and development, instead of creating confusion and chaos in the region,” said Wang Wenbin, spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China. .
Brian Deese, director of the White House National Economic Council, said the pact focuses on “issues that would be most important to American families,” such as avoiding empty store shelves. “This framework will help us build more resilient early warning for supply chains,” he told CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday. “We can solve those kinds of problems.”
Critics say the framework has huge shortcomings. It does not provide incentives to potential partners by lowering tariffs, nor does it give signatories greater access to US markets. Those limitations may not make the US framework an attractive alternative to the Trans-Pacific Economic Cooperation Agreement, which moved forward without the US after former President Donald Trump withdrew. China, the largest trading partner for many in the region, is also seeking to join the TPP.
The launch of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework, also known as IPEF, has been listed by the White House as one of the highlights of Biden’s trip to Asia and of his ongoing effort to strengthen ties with Pacific allies. Regardless, administration officials have closely watched China’s growing economic and military power in the region.
This story was reported by The Associated Press. Darlene Superville in Washington contributed to this report.