Defence ties with Taiwan ‘rock solid’, says US diplomat amid Beijing anger over troop revelation
- After Taiwanese leader confirmed US soldiers were training local forces, Sandra Oudkirk says American policy towards island is clear and unchanged
- A ‘few soldiers in Taiwan carries greater political significance than military significance’, says Chinese state media outlet
When asked if the United States would come to Taiwan’s defence if mainland China attacked, Oudkirk said the policy towards Taiwan had been clear and remained unchanged, citing US laws governing its relations with the island.
“I am not getting into details on specific operations and engagements, or training. I can say we have robust, ongoing defence and security relationships and discussions,” Oudkirk said. “They are grounded in a commitment that we have made to help support Taiwan’s self-defence in the Taiwan Relations Act.”
Chinese state media was quick to react, with a commentary in People’s Daily saying the presence of a “few soldiers in Taiwan carries greater political significance than military significance”, referring to Tsai’s remarks that the number of US troops in Taiwan was “not as many as people thought”.
The commentary said Tsai’s remarks were intended to push the US to make clear whether it would defend Taiwan if it came under attack by mainland China, but that Washington was aware of the risk.
“The attitude of the Americans has always been very clear that Taiwanese can be encouraged to step on the one-China policy red line, but the Americans themselves will not step on it as that is playing with fire,” the commentary published on Thursday said. “Defending Taiwan is nothing more than mere talk, and it is just an excuse to sell arms to Taiwan.”
In an interview aired on CNN on Wednesday, Tsai said Taipei had “a wide range of cooperation with the US” aimed at boosting the island’s defence, but she stopped short of saying how many US military personnel were in Taiwan.
Taiwanese officials later downplayed her remarks, with Defence Minister Chiu Kuo-cheng saying that such exchanges were for training purposes and were different to a garrison.
On Thursday, Chinese defence ministry spokesman Tan Kefei said China was determined to fight back if the US continued to use Taiwan to contain mainland China and to offer military support to the island.
