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Signs against China's claim to power: US President Biden is said to be sending military experts to Taiwan

2022-02-28T15:54:20.863Z


Is China speculating on Taiwan in light of Putin's Ukraine invasion? By sending defense experts, US President Biden apparently wants to show support for the island.


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US President Biden

Photo: Patrick Semansky/AP

Beijing claims democratically governed Taiwan and may feel spurred on by the Russian attack on Ukraine to use force to take control of the island if necessary.

According to the Reuters news agency, US President Joe Biden is sending a delegation of defense and security experts to Taiwan to demonstrate Washington's solidarity.

The panel of experts is to be led by the former chairman of the chiefs of staff, Mike Mullen.

The retired Navy Admiral, who served as the top US military under Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama, will be joined by other experts including Bush's national security adviser Meghan O'Sullivan and Obama's defense expert Michele Flournoy.

The delegation's trip was intended to "demonstrate our continued support for Taiwan," a US official said.

The group is expected to arrive in Taiwan on Tuesday afternoon and stay until Wednesday evening, according to the information.

A meeting is planned with President Tsai Ing-wen, Defense Minister Chiu Kuo-cheng and other senior officials.

"Washington will view any attempt to determine Taiwan's future by other than peaceful means as a threat to peace and security in the western Pacific," a US official said.

The visit comes days after a US warship sailed through the Taiwan Strait - which separates China and Taiwan.

The US military described this as routine, while Beijing spoke of a "provocation".

The White House has urged China to condemn Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

However, Beijing largely stays out of criticism of Moscow.

Just a few weeks before the invasion, Russian President Vladimir Putin and China's head of state Xi Jinping announced a strengthened strategic partnership to counter US influence.

Taiwan, on the other hand, with its strong semiconductor industry, is joining Western sanctions against Russia after the attack on Ukraine.

"We strongly condemn such an act of invasion and will impose sanctions together with the democratic countries," Prime Minister Su Tseng-chang announced in Taipei on Friday.

Beijing sees Taiwan as a breakaway province and not an independent state.

In addition, the People's Republic rejects any form of formal relations between other countries and the island republic.

as/Reuters

Source: spiegel

All news articles on 2022-02-28

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