Top diplomatic advisers to China and the United States pledged Monday to keep lines of communication open following a verbal spat between defense officials over the Taiwan issue.
Jake Sullivan, top diplomatic adviser to US President Joe Biden, and his Chinese counterpart, Yang Jiechi, however, they have not announced any commitment on their main points of tension.
The dialogue took place in Luxembourg, days after an exchange of warnings between Chinese Defense Minister Wei Fenghe and his US counterpart Lloyd Austin during the Shangri-La Dialogue, an annual security forum held in Singapore.
Wei warned that China will “fight to the end” to prevent Taiwan independence. The US Secretary of Defense denounced Beijing’s “provocative and destabilizing” military activity near the island.
Quoted by the official Xinhua News Agency, Yang Jiechi reiterated that “the Taiwan issue touches the political foundation of China-US relations, and if not handled properly, it will have a detrimental impact.”
The adviser urged the United States to avoid “bad judgment” and “wishful thinking” in this matter.
Jake Sullivan “reiterated the United States’ longstanding commitment to the ‘One China’ principle,” which assumes that the island of Taiwan is part of Chinese territory, but expressed “concerns about coercive and aggressive actions by Beijing” in the Taiwan Strait. according to a White House statement.
Taipei signed up 969 Chinese fighter jet sorties in its air defense identification zone in 2021according to data collected by Agence France Presse, and more than 470 since the beginning of the year.
China and Taiwan have lived as two autonomous territories since 1949, when the former Chinese nationalist government took refuge on the island after defeat in the civil war against the communists. However, Beijing considers Taiwan part of its territory, not a sovereign political entity, and threatens to use force if the island declares its independence.
Washington diplomatically recognizes Beijing and not Taipei, but the US Congress has agreed to sell arms to Taiwan for the defense of the territory.
Sullivan reaffirmed the so-called “strategic ambiguity” policy, according to which the United States diplomatically recognizes Communist China, but at the same time military support to Taiwan.
Joe Biden is under bipartisan pressure to deepen ties with Taiwan as Washington competes with China for influence in the Asia-Pacific region.
On a visit to Japan last month, Biden assured that his country would defend Taiwan militarily if the island were attacked by China..
Without “strategic ambiguity”, Joe Biden confirms that the US military would defend Taiwan if China attacked
The White House, however, later insisted that the traditional US “strategic ambiguity” on this issue had not been abandoned.
The meeting in Luxembourg follows a telephone conversation held on May 18.
The relationship between Beijing and Washington has deteriorated in recent years, with disputes over trade, human rights, the status of Hong Kong and Taiwan, sovereignty in the South China Sea and, more recently, the war in Ukraine.
In a statement, the White House spoke of a “Frank” and “Productive” Exchangeduring which Jake Sullivan “emphasized the importance of keeping the lines of communication open.”
The official Xinhua news agency also described the interview as “frank, insightful and constructive.”
Yang agreed to continue the dialogue, but made it clear that Beijing will not abdicate its “fundamental interests.”
China warns Biden not to underestimate Beijing’s resolve on Taiwan
“The United States has insisted on comprehensively containing and repelling China,” Yang said, reaffirming that issues related to Xinjiang, Hong Kong, Tibet or the South China Sea are the country’s internal affairs.
Source: Observadora
