US President Joe Biden has stated that American forces would defend Taiwan against a Chinese invasion, his most explicit statement on the issue of cross-strait relations to date.
Responding to a query over defending Taiwan in the event of a Chinese invasion, Biden said the US would defend Taiwan “if in fact there was an unprecedented attack,” according to The Washington Post citing CBS’s “60 Minutes” programme. Since Russia started its special military operation in Ukraine, Scott Pelley, the interviewer in the 60-minute program, pressed Biden on whether the situation would be different in the event of an attack on Taiwan.
“To be clear, sir, unlike Ukraine, US forces US men and women would defend Taiwan in the event of a Chinese invasion?”
The interview is the latest of several occasions in which Biden has said that the United States would come to Taiwan’s defence militarily if China were to attack. Each time, White House officials emphasised that his remarks did not represent any change in US policy.
Recently, a Biden administration official pointed out the remarks made by President Biden in May, when he told reporters that the practise of strategic ambiguity toward Taiwan remained. At that time, Biden did not say that he would send US troops to Taiwan in defence of the country, according to The Washington Post.
A representative from the State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment Sunday. The “60 Minutes” segment erroneously stated that US policy since 1979 has recognised Taiwan as part of China.
Under the United States’ “one-China policy,” the American government under various administrations has for decades acknowledged Beijing’s view without taking a position on the status of Taiwan’s sovereignty.