In an unexpected move, US President Joe Biden declared that the United States would defend Taiwan if China attacked it.
“Yes, we have a responsibility to do so,” he answered when asked during a town hall if the US would defend Taiwan.
However, a White House spokesman cleared that Biden’s remarks didn’t hint at a policy change.
The United States has long embraced “strategic ambiguity” in the area of Taiwan’s self-defense.
This has necessitated the US’ use of ambiguous language to describe how it would respond if China attacked Taiwan.
Taiwan considers itself a sovereign country, whereas China sees Taiwan as an irredentist province that it may reclaim by force if necessary.
The United States has no official diplomatic ties with Taiwan. Still, it does so under the Taiwan Relations Act, which states that the United States must assist Taiwan in defending itself.
Tensions have been flaring between the two nations in recent weeks after Beijing dispatched dozens of warplanes into Taiwan’s air-defense zone.
Biden took a jibe at China and cleared his intentions on this subject. He said the US is not in a worrisome state due to an intentional conflict with China. And he said no one needs to worry about the rising power of China.
Moreover, Biden shared the whole world knows the US has the most powerful military power in the history of the world.
“What you should be concerned about is whether or not they’re going to take actions that would put them in a position where they might make a terrible blunder,” he added.
Biden looked positive and answered in an affirmative way when asked whether the US would respond if China took any action against Taiwan.
The US is “not announcing any change in our policy and there is no change in our policy,” a White House spokesperson later attempted to clarify Biden’s comments to US media outlets.