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US President Joe Biden criticized China’s “coercive” actions in the Taiwan Strait on October 27, in a message to the summit of countries in the Asia-Pacific region. On the same day, the president of Taiwan said she “trusted” the United States.
The president of the United States, Joe Biden, spoke, once again, in favor of Taiwan, in a message to the summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
In a video message, Biden said the United States was “deeply concerned about China’s coercive and aggressive actions … in the Taiwan Strait,” which separates mainland China from Taiwan.
Tensions have risen in the region with increased air raids by China near Taiwan, a territory that Beijing sees as a province it will annex, if necessary by force.
Such actions “threaten regional peace and stability,” the US president added according to a recording of his statements obtained by the AFP news agency.
Taiwan says it has “confidence” in Washington about its future
On the same day, in an interview broadcast by CNN, Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen said she had “confidence” in the US support for Taiwan given “the long-standing relationship with the United States, as well as the support of the American people, Congress and the Administration. ”
The East Asia summit, which is being held virtually this year due to the Covid-19 pandemic, brings together 18 countries from the Asia-Pacific region. Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang will attend, as will Russian President Vladimir Putin and the leaders of South Korea and Japan.
The American criticism is unprecedented. Biden said on television last week that the United States was ready to defend the island in the event of an attack from China.
And on Tuesday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken called for Taiwan’s “meaningful participation” within the United Nations (UN) institutions, sparking a controversy with China.
“Taiwan has no right to participate in the UN,” said Ma Xiaoguang, spokesman for the Taiwan Affairs Office in Beijing, recalling that only sovereign states can join.
Human rights and maritime ambitions as the axis of discussion
President Biden also pointed to Beijing’s maritime ambitions on Wednesday, noting that the United States was “fully committed” to “defending” freedom of navigation, open waterways, unhindered commercial traffic, including in the China Sea. Southern”.
The South China Sea and its islands are the subject of competitive claims from China and several Southeast Asian countries.
Washington also said it will discuss “human rights in Xinjiang and Tibet, and the rights of the Hong Kong people.”
Myanmar, a country in crisis since the military junta took power in February, was at the center of the meeting. The United States “stands by the people of Myanmar and calls on the military regime to end the violence, release all political prisoners and return to the path of democracy,” said the US president.
With AFP
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