US must refrain from stoking Taiwan Strait tensions
- In extraordinary times, and with the People’s Liberation Army on heightened alert over Taiwan, sailings by American warships risk a dangerous escalation
The American and Taiwanese militaries have portrayed the latest sailing of US Navy warships through the Taiwan Strait as nothing out of the ordinary.
But with relations between Beijing and Washington at new lows as a result of House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s trip to the island and continuing visits by lawmakers, these are extraordinary times.
The People’s Liberation Army is on heightened alert after unprecedented drills and the risk of a miscalculation that escalates is extreme. Such actions aimed at containing China and supporting Taiwan’s independence-seekers are provocative.
Two guided missile cruisers from the US Seventh Fleet passed through the strait on Sunday, the first such mission since Pelosi’s trip on August 2.
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Three other delegations of American lawmakers have since visited, each prompting angry responses from Beijing. The US Navy claimed the vessels passed through waters “that are beyond the territorial sea of any coastal state” and showed Washington’s commitment “to a free and open Indo-Pacific”, while Taiwan’s defence ministry described the passage as “normal”.
Such words ignore the reality that Taiwan is a part of China and the sailing disregarded Chinese sovereignty and agreements between Beijing and Washington.
American military activity close to Chinese territory has been stepped up since Washington declared Beijing a “strategic competitor” in 2017. Sailing warships rather than an aircraft carrier through the Taiwan Strait, as has been done previously, may give the impression of being less irritating.
But it comes with the United States and its allies likening the Taiwan issue to Russia’s war in Ukraine, a matter that has prompted the Western military alliance, Nato, to label China a “systemic threat”.
Japan is forging ties with Nato and increasing its defence budget, and German and French air force planes have been sent to the Pacific. Washington is upgrading its defence systems at its base in Guam.
These are far from “ordinary” times. There is every need for restraint and caution and the US and its allies have to refrain from escalating tensions.
