China should calmly read and understand the message on Chinese-Taiwanese relations by President Donald Trump’s administration.
On its home page, the U.S. State Department updated its summary fact sheet regarding Taiwan, and removed text that said “we do not support Taiwan independence.”
It also incorporated points about strong support for Taiwan’s participation in international organizations; Taiwan’s participation has been hindered by Chinese pressure.
Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs welcomed the “positive and friendly” change that indicates a “close and amicable partnership between Taiwan and the United States.”
On the other hand, China, which considers Taiwan “an inalienable part of China,” opposed the change. A press officer from China’s Foreign Ministry called the move “a serious regression in its stance on Taiwan,” adding that it “urge[s] the U.S. to immediately correct its mistakes.”
Under former President Joe Biden’s administration in 2022, the State Department made a similar change in wording, but reversed the change after backlash from the Chinese government.
Nevertheless, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio views China as a grave threat. In a public congressional hearing on Jan. 15, as a candidate for Secretary of State, he declared, with an impending sense of crisis, that “unless something dramatic changes … we’re going to have to deal with this [a Chinese invasion of Taiwan] before the end of the decade.” He pointed out the gravity of deterring China, stating that it is critical that China “conclude that the costs of intervening in Taiwan are too high.”
After Rubio took office, he had a phone call with Wang Yi, the Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs and member of the Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party, in which Rubio criticized the Chinese military’s movements in the Taiwan Strait and South China Sea as “coercive actions.”
Recently, the Chinese military has also conducted military exercises in Taiwan’s vicinity. China’s overbearing conduct is seen as reaching dangerous levels, and the Trump administration is strengthening measures to restrain China.
This latest home page revision likely also has the same goal. The Trump administration’s aim is not for Taiwanese independence. The website, regarding the Taiwan problem, states that “We expect cross-Strait differences to be resolved by peaceful means, free from coercion, in a manner acceptable to the people on both sides of the Strait,” a more definite statement than was expressed under the Biden administration.
China views the Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te’s administration, which rejects Chinese annexation, as a “Taiwan independence” party. There is concern that, under the pretext of the deleted text, China will ramp up its intervention in Taiwan and make moves to unilaterally change the status quo. The Trump administration’s posture of not turning a blind eye to such efforts is also visible.
China should not instigate conflict in East Asia by attempting to forcefully change the status quo. Instead, it must strive to engage in peaceful dialogue.
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