U.S. President Joe Biden has said the United States will intervene militarily if China invades Taiwan, one of the strongest and most outspoken statements in support of White House leader Taipei for decades.
Joe Biden said the duty to protect the island was “even stronger” after Russia’s occupation of Ukraine. “This is a commitment we have made,” he told a news conference in Tokyo.
According to the US president, China’s use of force against Taiwan is “simply not appropriate” and “will change the whole region”, creating an event similar to what happened in Ukraine.
Under the “one China” policy, the United States has recognized Beijing as China’s legitimate government and severed diplomatic relations with Taiwan.
However, Washington maintains unofficial contacts with the region, including the practical embassy in Taipei. The United States also provides military equipment for the island’s defense.
China and Taiwan have been living as two autonomous regions since 1949, when the former Chinese nationalist government took refuge on the island after its defeat in the civil war against the Communists.
Although the island functions as a sovereign political entity, Beijing views Taiwan as part of its territory and threatens to use force if the territory formally declares independence.
In recent years, hundreds of Chinese warplanes have demonstrated Beijing’s power in Taiwan’s Air Defense Identity Zone (ADIZ).