United States: President Joe Biden said on Thursday that the US is committed to defending Taiwan if it is attacked by China, a stance that appears to contradict America’s proclaimed policy of “strategic ambiguity.” When asked if the United States would defend Taiwan if China attacked, Biden responded yes. “Yes, we commit to do that,” he said.
Biden has made similar statements in the past, only for the White House to respond that US policy regarding the island has not changed. The United States helps Taiwan with defensive weapons but has purposefully avoided saying whether it would intervene militarily if China attacked.
The United States acknowledges China’s claim of sovereignty over Taiwan under the “One China” policy. Beijing has dispatched dozens of warplanes into Taiwan’s Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) in recent weeks, and Chinese President Xi Jinping has stated that “reunification” between China and Taiwan is unavoidable.
After the town hall, a White House official attempted to clarify Biden’s words on Taiwan, claiming that the President was “not announcing any change in our policy and there is no change in our policy” in his remarks on China and Taiwan.
Biden stated on Thursday that he is not concerned about an intentional military clash with China, but he is concerned about unintended escalation. He stated he didn’t want to get into a long-term battle because of his friendship with Xi.