“That’s the commitment we made,” he said when asked if the US would intervene militarily against a Chinese attempt to forcibly take control of Taiwan.
Warning China against “flirting with danger”, US President Joe Biden said on Tuesday his country would defend Taiwan militarily if Beijing invaded the self-ruled island.
“That’s the commitment we made,” he said at a news conference in Tokyo when asked if the US would intervene militarily against a Chinese attempt to forcibly take control of Taiwan. “We agreed with the One China policy, we signed on to it… but the idea that it can be taken by force is just not appropriate”.
“We agree with the One-China policy, we signed onto it and all the attendant agreements made from there,” Biden added. “But the idea that it could be taken by force, just taken by force, is just not – it’s just not appropriate. It will dislocate the entire region and be another action similar to what happened in Ukraine.”
At the same time, Biden said that US policy toward Taiwan “has not changed at all.”
Bloomberg reported that a White House spokeswoman repeated that comment after Biden’s remarks, saying the president reiterated “our One China Policy” and “our commitment under the Taiwan Relations Act to provide Taiwan with the military means to defend itself.”
Biden’s statement is likely to further anger China, which has warned the US repeatedly over its increased support for Taiwan.
“If the US side insists on playing the Taiwan card and goes further and further down the wrong road, it will certainly lead to a dangerous situation,” Yang Jiechi, Beijing’s top diplomat, said in a phone call with National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan recently.
Less time to read?
Try Quickreads
-
Sri Lankan medicine shortage a death sentence for some, doctors say
A shortage of medicine caused by an economic crisis in Sri Lanka could soon cause deaths, doctors said, as hospitals are forced to postpone life-saving procedures for their patients because they do not have the necessary drugs. “It is very bad for cancer patients,” said Dr Roshan Amaratunga. “Sometimes, in the morning we plan for some surgeries (but) we may not be able to do on that particular day … as (supplies) are not there.”
-
Kurt Cobain’s electric guitar auctions for nearly $5 million
Rock icon Kurt Cobain’s electric guitar, which he played in his band Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” music video, was auctioned for nearly $5 million. According to Variety, the Fender Mustang electric guitar was sold to the Jim Irsay Collection of Indianapolis at Julien’s Auctions on May 22. In his final interview with Guitar World, Cobain had said that the 1969 left-handed guitar was one of his favourites.
-
IMF warns against global economic fragmentation from Ukraine war
The International Monetary Fund warned against global economic fragmentation as a consequence of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, saying that undoing decades of integration will make the world poorer and more dangerous. Nations should lower trade barriers to alleviate shortages and lower prices, after more than 30 countries restricted trade in food, energy and other key commodities, IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said.
-
Biden hails ‘good friend’ Kishida, says US fully committed to Japan’s defence
President Joe Biden assured his “good friend” Prime Minister Fumio Kishida of Japan on Monday that the United States is fully committed to Japan’s defence, amid simmering tension with China and the ramifications of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Biden was greeted with a military honour guard that played the anthems of both countries under a bright blue sky. Earlier, he met Emperor Naruhito, talking briefly at the palace entrance before being ushered inside.
-
Davos Forum is back after 2 yrs, but with less billionaire starpower and no snow
Ask some of the world’s rich and powerful descending on Davos this week and they’ll tell you: After a two-year pandemic-enforced hiatus from the Swiss ski resort, the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum just isn’t going to be the same. The chiefs of Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. aren’t going. Neither is BlackRock Inc.’s Larry Fink or Steve Schwarzman, the private-equity billionaire.