Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov accuses Washington of ‘playing with fire’ over Taiwan

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) – Russia accused the United States on Saturday of “playing with fire” over Taiwan while China said it would push for a “peaceful reunification” with the democratically governed island and vowed to take strong steps to oppose any outside interference, a veiled reference to Washington.

Tensions over Taiwan escalated between Washington and Beijing after a visit there in August by US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, which was followed by large-scale Chinese military exercises, as well as US President Joe Biden’s pledge to defend China. Island.

Weeks before Russian President Vladimir Putin launched an invasion of Ukraine in February, he and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping announced a “borderless” partnership, promising more cooperation against the West.

Putin’s top diplomat, Sergei Lavrov, in his speech on Saturday to the United Nations General Assembly, targeted Washington’s position on Taiwan as well as Western sanctions on Moscow over the war in Ukraine.

“They are playing with fire around Taiwan. On top of that, they promise to provide military support to Taiwan,” Lavrov said.

Putin explicitly supports China at the expense of Taiwan. “We intend to firmly adhere to the ‘one China’ principle,” Putin said last week, adding, “We condemn the provocations by the United States and its satellites in the Taiwan Strait.”

Asked last week in an interview with CBS 60 Minutes whether US forces would defend Taiwan, Biden replied: “Yes, if there was actually an unprecedented attack.”

This statement was the most outspoken yet on the obligation of US forces to defend the island. It also appears to bypass the longstanding US policy of “strategic ambiguity,” which does not make clear whether the United States will respond militarily to an attack on Taiwan.

Speaking before Lavrov, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said Beijing will continue to work for “peaceful reunification” with Taiwan, and fight “separatist activities” toward Taiwan independence while taking strong steps to oppose any outside interference.

“Only by firmly thwarting separatist activities can we forge a real basis for peaceful reunification. Only when China is fully reunified can there be lasting peace across the Taiwan Strait,” he said.

His comments come a day after a 90-minute meeting with US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken in New York, their first talks since Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan in August.

After the meeting, China accused the United States of sending “very wrong and dangerous signals” to Taiwan. A senior Biden administration official told reporters that Blinken told Wang that maintaining peace and stability in Taiwan is very important. Read more

China considers Taiwan one of its provinces. Beijing has long vowed to bring Taiwan under its control and has not ruled out the use of force to do so.

Taiwan’s democratically elected government vehemently objects to China’s claims to sovereignty and says only the island’s 23 million residents can decide its future.

China’s warning from Ukraine

Wang said that China supports all efforts conducive to a peaceful solution to the “crisis” in Ukraine, but warned of the possibility of an extension of the war.

“The basic solution is to address the legitimate security concerns of all parties and build a balanced, effective and sustainable security architecture,” Wang said in his speech.

“We call on all parties concerned to prevent the spread of the crisis and protect the legitimate rights and interests of developing countries,” he added.

China has criticized Western sanctions against Russia, but has stopped short of endorsing or assisting in the military campaign.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said last week that Chinese leader Xi Jinping has concerns about Ukraine.

Additional reporting by Daphne Psalidakis, Humira Pamuk and Michelle Nichols; Editing by Chris Reese

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