High-powered talks between US, Taiwanese defence officials ‘could become the new normal’

Pentagon wants a ‘more substantive role in arms sales’, National Committee on American Foreign Policy says after annual conference in New York

Meeting in May between Taiwan’s national security chief David Lee and White House national security adviser John Bolton may be sign of things to come

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Beijing is keeping a close eye on the interaction between the United States and Taiwan. Photo: Reuters

Published: 9:00pm, 4 Jul 2019Updated: 11:13pm, 4 Jul 2019

High-level meetings between defence officials from the United States and Taiwan could become the “new normal” as the Pentagon seeks to increase its involvement with the self-ruled island, but US President Donald Trump is still seen as a “restraining force” on the issue, an American think tank has said.

The National Committee on American Foreign Policy, a non-profit organisation based in New York, made the claims in a report published on Tuesday, following its annual conference in the city last month. The event was attended by academics and officials from mainland China and the United States.

“The [US] defence department wants a more substantive role in arms sales,” the report said. “Public high-level talks, such as the ones between [Taiwan’s national security chief] David Lee and [White House national security adviser] John Bolton, could become the new normal.”

Lee met Bolton during a visit to the US in May. The meeting between senior US and Taiwanese security officials was the first of its kind in more than four decades, and it infuriated Beijing.

The Pentagon is keen to increase its involvement with Taiwan, according to a report by a US think tank. Photo: Reuters

While the United States does not formally recognise Taiwan as an independent country, under the Taiwan Relations Act Washington is bound by law to provide the island with the means to defend itself.