The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday vowed to continue deepening ties with Washington after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken reiterated his support for peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait during his trip to China.
“It’s very important that we [the US] preserve the status quo that has helped maintain peace and stability across the Strait for decades,” Blinken said at a news conference at the Beijing American Center on Monday as he wrapped up his two-day visit.
He reiterated that the US’ “one China” policy, guided by the Taiwan Relations Act, the Three Joint Communiques and the “six assurances” has not changed, adding that the US does not support Taiwanese independence.
Photo: screen grab from the ministry’s livestream
The US is concerned about “the PRC’s [People’s Republic of China] provocative actions in the Taiwan Strait, as well as in the South and East China seas,” Blinken said.
A conflict in the Taiwan Strait “would have dramatic consequences for virtually every country around the world” as 50 percent of commercial container traffic goes through the Taiwan Strait and 70 percent of semiconductors are manufactured in Taiwan, he said.
Cross-strait differences should be resolved peacefully, he said, adding that the US remains “committed to meeting our responsibilities under the Taiwan Relations Act, including making sure that Taiwan has the ability to defend itself.”
In Taipei, ministry spokesman Jeff Liu (劉永健) told a news conference that Taiwan and the US trust each other, and the two sides maintain smooth communication channels.
Taiwan has always maintained close contact with the US regarding high-level interactions between the US and China, Liu said.
At a briefing ahead of Blinken’s trip, US National Security Council Coordinator for the Indo-Pacific Kurt Campbell said that many nations and institutions have spoken of their interest in seeing the maintenance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait over the past two years, which is “a significant development.”
The statement showed that “the US continues to support peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait with clarity, bipartisanship and unwavering determination,” Liu said.
The ministry welcomed the US’ support for Taiwan, he said, adding that the government would continue deepening its security partnership with the US to defend the rules-based international order, and promote peace, stability and prosperity in the Taiwan Strait and the Indo-Pacific region.
In an interview with National Public Radio at the US embassy in Beijing on Monday, Blinken said that due to responsible management, the US was able to help preserve peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait for more than four decades.
However, the US has “real concerns about the direction that this has taken in recent years where China has taken reckless actions,” he said.
“It’s tremendously important that we [the US and China] communicate clearly, directly, about Taiwan,” Blinken said, adding that he and Chinese officials “had really some very direct, very detailed, very explicit conversations” during his visit.
The Ministry of Transportation and Communications yesterday inaugurated the Danjiang Bridge across the Tamsui River in New Taipei City, saying that the structure would be an architectural icon and traffic artery for Taiwan. Feted as a major engineering achievement, the Danjiang Bridge is 920m long, 211m tall at the top of its pylon, and is the longest single-pylon asymmetric cable-stayed bridge in the world, the government’s Web site for the structure said. It was designed by late Iraqi-British architect Zaha Hadid. The structure, with a maximum deck of 70m, accommodates road and light rail traffic, and affords a 200m navigation channel for boats,
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