US-China relations: Azar’s visit to Taiwan was designed to not upset Beijing, observers say

‘Washington did not want to provoke Beijing to the point that it could spark a military conflict,’ academic says

Beijing’s relatively muted response to minister’s visit was because it ‘doesn’t want to do anything that would boost Trump’s chances in the November presidential election’, he says

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Washington was careful not to antagonise Beijing too much by sending its health minister to Taiwan, experts say. Photo: EPA-EFE

Published: 6:00pm, 15 Aug 2020Updated: 9:44pm, 15 Aug 2020

The recent visit to Taiwan by US Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar was carefully managed not to cause unnecessary upset to Beijing, while still showing Washington’s support for the self-ruled island amid growing US-China tensions, observers said.

Despite the timing of the trip, and the fact Azar is the highest-ranked official to visit since 1979, Wang Kung-yi, a political-science professor at Chinese Culture University in Taipei, said the US was not looking to start a fight.

“Washington did not want to provoke Beijing to the point that it could spark a military conflict,” he said.

“By sending the health secretary instead of the state or defence secretary, Azar’s trip was carefully managed to avoid crossing Beijing’s red line.”

Nonetheless, US President Donald Trump would have been well aware that by sending Azar to Taipei he was making a statement to China’s leaders, while also trying to rouse the American electorate into voting for him in November, Wang said.