Biden wipes off China’s complaints and sends the first delegation to Taiwan

During their three-day stay, the US delegation will dine with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen and the Secretary of State and discuss bilateral relations, the Taiwan side said. Taiwan’s state-run Central News Agency reported on Wednesday that Taiwanese officials would inform the US delegation of China’s recent provocations against the island and across the region, calling for more support from Washington on trade, security and economic matters.

The senior US delegation arrived in Taiwan hours before John Kerry, the special climate envoy of the Biden administration, visited Shanghai to discuss cooperation with Beijing on climate issues. Mr Kerry said in an interview that Washington’s pursuit of climate cooperation with China would not mean compromising on other points of contention with Beijing, a list that also includes Taiwan.

Visits to Taiwan by senior figures of the US government, even former officials, are hypersensitive to Beijing, which views Taiwan as part of Chinese territory and has become increasingly aggressive in its attitude towards the island.

A statement by a Taiwan State Department spokeswoman characterized the US team as “a senior visiting group sent especially by President Biden” to convey the US “close friendship and support”.

A US official said the delegation’s close personal relationship with President Biden underscores the strong signal of support Washington wanted to send. Mr. Dodd is an old friend of the President.

In a press conference on Wednesday, Beijing’s Taiwan office said that China “does not promise to give up the use of force and retains the ability to take any necessary action.”

It warned the US to stop exchanges with Taiwan and pointed to recent military exercises by the Chinese People’s Liberation Army as a sign of its determination to contain what it described as Taiwanese independence forces.

“We are against any form of official exchange between the US and Taiwan, regardless of how it is presented, regardless of what excuses are used as a cover,” said Ma Xiaoguang, a spokesman for the Taiwan Affairs Office. Calling something official or unofficial is “just their lie to deceive people,” he said. China’s State Department said it had complained to Washington about the visit.

The Biden government has indicated its willingness to deepen its involvement with Taiwan as Beijing increases its rhetorical and military pressure on the island.

Many Taiwanese had predicted that the Biden administration would take a more lenient approach to the island than the Trump administration, which mobilized Beijing last year by sending two senior US officials to Taipei. Washington formally cut diplomatic ties with the island in 1979, although a US law requires Washington to ensure that the island can defend itself.

Instead, the Biden administration largely continues on the path of the Trump administration to increase personal exchanges with Taiwanese officials. The US State Department this month relaxed restrictions on official government contact with Taiwanese counterparts to encourage engagement as part of what it called “our deepening unofficial relationship” with the island.

On Sunday, Secretary of State Antony Blinken reiterated the US commitment to help Taiwan defend itself. It would be a “grave mistake for anyone to attempt to forcibly change the existing status quo,” said Mr. Excel in television reactions that appeared to be aimed at Beijing.

Beijing has vowed to assimilate Taiwan, if necessary by force. The Chinese military has flown more than 250 missions near the island this year, according to a Wall Street Journal review of Taiwan Defense Ministry revelations. That includes 25 missions on Monday alone off the island’s southwest coast, the largest one-day total since Taiwan began releasing daily figures last year. About 380 similar flights from China were followed by Taiwan last year.

While the risk of a conflict between Beijing and Washington remains low, analysts say the two sides have conducted naval drilling close to each other in waters near Taiwan. The US Navy recently published a photo showing its guided missile destroyer USS. Mustin follows China’s first aircraft carrier, the Liaoning, in the Philippine Sea this month. A few days later, the US deployed an aircraft carrier and a ship in the South China Sea.

An unclassified report from the US Office of the Director of National Intelligence this week said Beijing’s efforts to bring Taiwan closer is part of a strategy to secure its status as a global power and undermine the US.

Given Beijing’s increased language and activity in Taiwan, “the US must do more to strengthen Taiwan’s military defenses,” said William A. Stanton, vice president of National Yang-Ming University in Taipei and former director of the National Institute of Public Health. American Institute in Taiwan, Washington’s de facto embassy on the island.

Still, Mr Stanton said the visit of a two-pronged delegation would “boost morale in Taiwan” and give the island a “visible symbol of support”. Mr. Armitage, a Republican, served under George W. Bush, while Mr. Steinberg, a Democrat, held positions in the Clinton and Obama governments.

“We welcome the gesture of friendship and dedication,” tweeted Taiwan’s US representative Bi-khim Hsiao before the delegation landed.

—Chun Han Wong contributed to this article.

Write to Chao Deng at [email protected]