The US has long tried to avoid directly needling China over Taiwan, by taking a position of ambiguity as to whether the US would immediately go to war to prevent a Chinese takeover of the island. President Biden has done away with that ambiguity now, however, saying he absolutely would go to war over Taiwan.
Biden summed up his statement with “I don’t want a cold war with China. I just want China to understand that we’re not going to step back, that we’re not going to change any of our views.”
That’s an unfortunately common US stance to take, not wanting a war but ruling out any discussions or flexibility to avoid one. While the US was nominally worried China would blunder without such a stance, the greater risk is the US blundering into a war through sheer stubbornness.
Biden has been pushed to take this stance by anti-China hawks. At this point it’s not particularly necessary, as Taiwan is currently such an important trade partner for the whole region that such a war would be damaging to all sides.
China and Taiwan are going through some tensions lately, with China accusing Taiwan of behaving provocatively in acting as though they are autonomous.
The US position on Taiwan is bizarre, and has been for decades. After initially recognizing Taiwan as rightful government of all of China, they reversed and recognized the PRC.
Officially, then, the US doesn’t recognize Taiwan at all anymore, and has no embassy or diplomatic relations, apart from some work-alike “unofficial” facilities run by the State Department.
On top of maintaining an “unofficial” relationship, US law also commits the US to massive arms sales to Taiwan, which have been very large in recent years. Those arms sales similarly fuel tensions with China.
Biden’s statement doesn’t practically change any of that, though the threat of war clearly puts the US down a path of worse relations with China.
Oh the reluctant warrior, forced to threaten war in order to prevent it. This changes little for China except making it even more crystal clear how aggressive and meddling we are, what it more does is take away Bidens future options. Mission accomplished.
So an illegal Chinese invasion of a peaceful democratic independent nation would not be “aggressive” or “meddling?” Taiwan’s people are nearly 100% unanimous in refusing to be ruled by the CCP. Would you accept being ruled by a genocidal, human-rights hating dictatorship? If you wouldn’t, then why should Taiwanese people?
No more illegal than u.s. invasions of Iraq, Afghanistan, etc.
Most nations, including the US, have a one China policy: there is no formal independent country called Taiwan. This is a very special case and needs very careful handling, not the cavalier statements made by Biden.
And btw it ain’t 100% … many Taiwanese also believe they are part of China’s, though I believe a majority do favor independence. A majority of people in Borneo, Aceh, Kashmir, Catalonia, Western Sahara, etc. also want to be independent … does not mean it’s any of our business other than wishing people well.
The ROC said they were represented all of China and were recognized as such by the UN – when Taiwan held the permanent Security Council seat until 1971. Now the radical leftist Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) of Taiwan wants to change what Taiwan had already agreed to by several communiques. They are the ones that are attempting to change what was a mutually beneficial relationship with China.
If the radical DPP would be a big power neutral nation, the PRC might actually give in to more sovereignty for them for the future. But sure as heck, the US would move massive military bases there if they did that, and that would be an unacceptable threat to China.
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You have lapped up all the anti-China propaganda and absorbed it like a sponge. They have very low crime, modern cities, high tech, happy people, and no tents/needles/human feces lining the sidewalks. Go there and see for yourself, ostrich.
What the Taiwanese people want is up for them to say, and fight for if they chose to. The US government’s behavior is the only nation I have some responsibility to contain, and the US government’s current posture of massively arming Taiwan is neither impartial nor constructive towards peaceful resolution of these issues.
The main danger from this would be that Taiwan gets too confident in picking a fight with China because they think the USA will back them up without question.
The Main danger is Jao Bai Den himself and those around him in his administration, it’s a threat not just to Taiwan but to the American People. FJB
This is idiotic. Taiwan has not threatened to attack China. China has openly declared it will invade Taiwan if it feels it wants to, to “re-unify” a people who do NOT want to be ruled by the CCP. Taiwan won’t “pick a fight” with nuclear-armed China as that would be suicidal. The mere suggestion is ridiculous.
Indeed, Taiwan won’t seek to attack China. However a formal declaration of Independence, followed by seeking full UN membership, etc, would be provocative towards China. I don’t think China would try to invade as they would be at a big tactical disadvantage. Instead I think they’d try to blockade the renegade province, telling them they’re not allowed to trade with any country except China. Cargo ships are easy to scare and easy to attack, so that way they’d no longer be at a tactical disadvantage.
But they will with US backing.
The Confederacy didn’t threaten to attack Washington either, they just wanted a split with the Union.
Well then the Taiwanese are not very bright after watching the ignominious defeat America got at the hands of a bunch of towel headed, pajama and sandal clad throwbacks to the Dark Ages.
I wonder what kind of pejoratives you’ll come up with for the Taiwanese after they spend 20 years doing to the CCP regime what the Taliban spent 20 years doing to the US regime.
Will someone change his diaper and put him to bed? It’s obvious he shot his load with Afghanistan and now we’re getting the real Biden.
America relies on it`s carriers for air support once they hit the sea bed it would be game over .
It is the policy of the United States to defend China from Chinese aggression and we are willing to risk nuclear war to do so.
The rot is so deep at the heart of empire …
I don’t generally have a bone to pick with Taiwan, but it’s not worth tangling with China over. I fear, though, Taiwan will be emboldened- just like our best friend in the Middle East- to make hawkish statements and try to pull us into fighting for them.
Since when has “US law” been binding on anything?
It appears Biden wants Taiwan destroyed, because they would be the one country reduced to rubble (without resorting to nukes).
He misspoke.
What do you want the US to do? China is a genocidal totalitarian government that has threatened Taiwan – an independent democratic nation – with pre-emptive attack. Surely the US has to at least say it’ll defend Taiwan – even if it won’t – to at least deter an illegal Chinese invasion and the massacre that would follow.
Democracies should not let a human-rights hating autocracy get what it wants through force of arms. China wants to steal territory from nearly every one of its neighbours. If they succeed with Taiwan, they’ll do the same with Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, Japan and India. Should we wait for all of Asia to be on fire before we try to dissuade China from flexing its military might?
The “domino” theory again?
Protect our southern border from invasion (for a starter).
Baloney – fix election there for the radical leftist Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) that is attempting to stir up the previously peaceful status quo with China.
You and your discredited “domino theory” that LBJ used to hoodwink into a war with Vietnam. The only dominos that have succumbed to military pressure and economic blackmail have fallen to the US.
You’re still using Taiwan as a bargaining chip/pawn like we’ve done ever since Nixon/Kissinger.
And for your lack of information, Taiwan claimed all of China (one China) until that authority was yanked from them by the United Nations in 1971, and finally in 1979 the United States withdrew nation status from Taiwan, withdrew all US military personnel, and abrogated the Taiwan-US Mutual Defense Treaty. All other “democracies” like Japan, Philippines, Germany, England, France, had already done that years earlier.
Asia for the Asians insofar as military might, not for the US to stick it’s belligerent nose into another needless conflict for big money interests.
Never was any of our business any more than sticking our military noses into Civil War conflicts in Vietnam and Korea (and Serbia too).
Completely needless-the status quo can continue, but the USA unaccountably thinks it is top dog and has no other problems(!) so can provoke China. Poor Biden cannot string two words together anyway.
Does Biden even realize that less then ten percent of the people on Taiwan are Taiwanese and the remaining ninety percent are Han Chinese. This Taiwan situation could easily backfire on whoever is stupid enough to get involved in it, a little like sticking ones nose in a family squabble.
What makes Wash. think they can defeat real armies and navies when all of NATO couldn’t defeat tribesmen on horseback with old rifles. This will be another Asian war that will be lost, but the MIC and Wash. will benefit from profits and campaign funds. Follow the money and find out who benefits from endless wars.