Changes to the US Department of State’s fact sheet on Taiwan indicate a significant warming in relations between the two nations, an academic said yesterday, as Beijing denounced them as “political manipulation.”
The department’s Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs on Thursday updated its online fact sheet on Taiwan-US relations, removing statements saying that Washington acknowledged Beijing’s “one China” position and did not support Taiwanese independence.
A previous version of the document opened with the statement: “The United States and Taiwan enjoy a robust unofficial relationship” and said the US acknowledged “the Chinese position that there is but one China and Taiwan is part of China.”
Photo: Screen grab and graphic by the Taipei Times
In the updated version, the statement mentioning Taiwan as a part of China has been removed, and the document now opens with the statement: “As a leading democracy and a technological powerhouse, Taiwan is a key US partner in the Indo-Pacific.”
Yeh Yao-Yuan (葉耀元), chair of International Studies and Modern Languages at the University of St Thomas in Houston, Texas, wrote on Facebook that the changes signify a “striking warming of relations” between the US and Taiwan, mainly due to rising tensions between Washington and Beijing.
Even though the US still upholds its “one China” policy and strategic ambiguity toward Taiwan, Yeh said the US now sees Taiwan more as an important economic, security and democratic partner, and is more open to Taiwanese making their own decisions about their future.
The explanation for the US’ “one China” policy has been completely removed, instead emphasizing the “six assurances,” Yeh said.
The narrative change places more emphasis on bilateral diplomatic interaction, which can be seen from the US dispatching high-level officials to visit Taiwan following the passage of the Taiwan Travel Act, he said.
Inclusion of the US-Taiwan Economic Prosperity Partnership Dialogue, and the Technology, Trade and Investment Collaboration also lays the foundation for a bilateral free-trade agreement, Yeh said, adding that mention of the US-Taiwan Education Initiative only further highlights Taiwan’s rising status in Washington’s diplomatic and strategic plans.
Washington’s ties with Taipei have warmed, because the US’ attitude toward China has changed from partner to competitor, Yeh said.
While it does not indicate that the US is renouncing its “one China” policy or its policy of strategic ambiguity, it is nonetheless a great step forward, Yeh said.
Meanwhile, American Institute in Taiwan spokesman Ed Dunn yesterday sidestepped questions about the change, only reiterating the US’ stance that Washington’s “one China” policy has been guided by the US’ Taiwan Relations Act, the Three Joint Communiques and the “six assurances” for more than four decades.
“Our commitment to Taiwan is rock-solid and contributes to the maintenance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait and within the region,” he said.
The US is committed to deepening unofficial relations with Taiwan — a leading democracy and a critical economic and security partner of the US, Dunn added.
Citing Dunn’s remarks, Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokeswoman Joanne Ou (歐江安) said that Washington has said that its policy toward Taiwan has not changed.
Taiwan would continue to deepen relations with the US, and enhance its self-defense capabilities, its freedom and democratic system to promote cross-strait peace and security, she said.
The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs slammed the change, calling it “a petty act of fictionalizing and hollowing out the ‘one China’ principle.”
“This kind of political manipulation on the Taiwan question is an attempt to change the ‘status quo’ in the Taiwan Strait, and will inevitably stir up a fire that only burns [the US],” ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian (趙立堅) told reporters in Beijing.
Additional reporting by Reuters
The government is aiming to recruit 1,096 foreign English teachers and teaching assistants this year, the Ministry of Education said yesterday. The foreign teachers would work closely with elementary and junior-high instructors to create and teach courses, ministry official Tsai Yi-ching (蔡宜靜) said. Together, they would create an immersive language environment, helping to motivate students while enhancing the skills of local teachers, she said. The ministry has since 2021 been recruiting foreign teachers through the Taiwan Foreign English Teacher Program, which offers placement, salary, housing and other benefits to eligible foreign teachers. Two centers serving northern and southern Taiwan assist in recruiting and training
WIDE NET: Health officials said they are considering all possibilities, such as bongkrekic acid, while the city mayor said they have not ruled out the possibility of a malicious act of poisoning Two people who dined at a restaurant in Taipei’s Far Eastern Department Store Xinyi A13 last week have died, while four are in intensive care, the Taipei Department of Health said yesterday. All of the outlets of Malaysian vegetarian restaurant franchise Polam Kopitiam have been ordered to close pending an investigation after 11 people became ill due to suspected food poisoning, city officials told a news conference in Taipei. The first fatality, a 39-year-old man who ate at the restaurant on Friday last week, died of kidney failure two days later at the city’s Mackay Memorial Hospital. A 66-year-old man who dined
‘CARRIER KILLERS’: The Tuo Chiang-class corvettes’ stealth capability means they have a radar cross-section as small as the size of a fishing boat, an analyst said President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday presided over a ceremony at Yilan County’s Suao Harbor (蘇澳港), where the navy took delivery of two indigenous Tuo Chiang-class corvettes. The corvettes, An Chiang (安江) and Wan Chiang (萬江), along with the introduction of the coast guard’s third and fourth 4,000-tonne cutters earlier this month, are a testament to Taiwan’s shipbuilding capability and signify the nation’s resolve to defend democracy and freedom, Tsai said. The vessels are also the last two of six Tuo Chiang-class corvettes ordered from Lungteh Shipbuilding Co (龍德造船) by the navy, Tsai said. The first Tuo Chiang-class vessel delivered was Ta Chiang (塔江)
EYE ON STRAIT: The US spending bill ‘doubles security cooperation funding for Taiwan,’ while also seeking to counter the influence of China US President Joe Biden on Saturday signed into law a US$1.2 trillion spending package that includes US$300 million in foreign military financing to Taiwan, as well as funding for Taipei-Washington cooperative projects. The US Congress early on Saturday overwhelmingly passed the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act 2024 to avoid a partial shutdown and fund the government through September for a fiscal year that began six months ago. Under the package, the Defense Appropriations Act would provide a US$27 billion increase from the previous fiscal year to fund “critical national defense efforts, including countering the PRC [People’s Republic of China],” according to a summary