Washington: US President Joe Biden said US forces would defend Taiwan in event of a Chinese invasion. Beijing claims that the self ruled island – Taiwan – is part of its territory.
When asked during an interview on CBS News’s “60 Minutes” program on Sunday whether the US military would defend Taiwan in case of Chinese invasion, Biden said it would if there “was an unprecedented attack.”
President Biden tells 60 Minutes that U.S. men and women would defend Taiwan in the event of a Chinese invasion. However, after our interview, a White House official told us that U.S. policy on Taiwan has not changed. https://t.co/ANg54LifSH pic.twitter.com/V5qjoqF36T
— 60 Minutes (@60Minutes) September 19, 2022
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Asked to clarify further, Biden confirmed that US personnel would come to the defence of Taiwan, unlike in Ukraine, where Washington provided military support against Russia rather than sending American troops to the war field.
Biden’s latest comment appeared to go beyond long-standing stated U.S. policy on Taiwan. The statement this time presents a clear picture about sending US troops to defend the self-governed island.
Officially, the US maintains “strategic ambiguity” on whether American forces would defend Taiwan, but the Taiwan Relations Act obligates the US to help equip Taiwan to defend itself, a CBS report said.
“What should Chinese President Xi know about your commitment to Taiwan?” the interviewer further asked the President.
“We agree with what we signed onto a long time ago,” the president replied. “And that there’s one China policy, and Taiwan makes their own judgments about their independence. We are not moving– we’re not encouraging their being independent. We’re not– that– that’s their decision.”
