China has belittled US support for Taiwan after a delegation of former Washington officials arrived in Taipei on Tuesday.
The two-day visit came amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, prompting Taiwan’s President Tsai Ying-wen to raise level of military readiness against “foreign forces intending to manipulate the situation” and “influencing the morals of Taiwanese society.”
The Biden-appointed delegation was led by Mike Mullen, a former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in the George W. Bush and Barack Obama administrations. He was joined by former national security advisers Evan Medeiros and Mike Green and former senior defense officials Michelle Flurnoy and Megan O’Sullivan, according to Newsweek.
Taiwanese Prime Minister Su Tseng-chang said the visit showed “the importance of both Taiwan-US relations and Taiwan’s position” and the United States’ strong support for the island, according to Reuters. Last week, Su announced that Taiwan was joining the “democracies” in imposing sanctions on Russia.
In response to a visit to the United States, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin reiterated Beijing’s position on Taiwan and dismissed US support as “useless.”
“The will of the Chinese people to protect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of our country is unshakable. “Whoever sends the United States to show so-called support for Taiwan will be useless,” Wang told reporters.
The officer also responded to news of a U.S. warship sailing across the Taiwan Strait on Saturday, which the U.S. military called “routine activity.”
“If the United States is trying to threaten and oppress China with this, then we must tell them that in front of the Great Wall of Steel, forged by 1.4 billion Chinese, any military deterrence is just scrap metal,” Wang said.
On Wednesday, the US delegation met with Tsai, who expressed solidarity with Ukraine before their correspondence.
“The commitment of the Ukrainian people to defend freedom and democracy and their fearless commitment to defending their country have been met with deep sympathy by the people of Taiwan, as we are also at the forefront of the battle for democracy,” Tsai said before the meeting. According to CNN.
“History teaches us that if we close our eyes to military aggression, we are only exacerbating threats to ourselves,” she added. “Now is the time for all democracies in the world to unite.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine made a comparison with The situation in China and Taiwan. Emily Feng, an NPR correspondent in Beijing, said there were “not many similarities” but that there was a “common thread in the territory”.
“With Russia’s pretext for an invasion, their rationale was that there was this pro-Western state right on its borders, Ukraine, which has very strong cultural ties with Russia. And if you look at Taiwan, it’s also this pro-Western country right next to China that shares these overlapping cultural ties with China, “Feng told NPR’s. Morning edition.
Mullen said he hoped their visit would reassure Taiwan of “commitments”
“We are coming to Taiwan at a very difficult and critical time in world history. As President Biden said, democracy faces sustained and worrying challenges, most recently in Ukraine. “Democracy needs champions more than ever,” Mullen said.
After Wednesday’s meeting, Tsai said Taiwan would set up a donation account for Ukraine. She also promised, along with Su and Vice President William Lai, that the monthly salary would be donated to help Ukrainian refugees.
Presented image via Formosa TV English News
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