The government remains confident in stable relations with the US, but is closely watching how the Taiwan issue would be addressed at a summit between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) later this week, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said today.
Trump is scheduled to visit Beijing from Wednesday to Friday for a summit with Xi.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio last week said that although Taiwan would likely be on the agenda, both Washington and Taipei view maintaining stability in the Taiwan Strait as being in their interests.
Speaking with reporters on the sidelines of a legislative session, Lin said the government has maintained close communication with Washington through all available channels.
Washington has provided repeated reassurances that US policy on Taiwan has not and would not change, Lin added.
Later, responding to lawmakers during the session, Lin said he remained confident in long-term Taiwan-US relations, as they are grounded in the Taiwan Relations Act (TRA) and the "six assurances."
The TRA, signed into law by then-US president Jimmy Carter on April 10, 1979, commits the US to providing Taiwan with defense articles and services necessary for it to maintain a sufficient self-defense capability following the severing of official diplomatic ties.
Under the "six assurances" issued by then-US president Ronald Reagan's administration in 1982, the US pledged not to consult Beijing on arms sales to Taiwan and took no position on Taiwan's sovereignty.
Lin also told lawmakers that Washington has indicated it wants to focus on issues related to the trade war, fentanyl and the Middle East during the summit, while Beijing has insisted on raising the Taiwan issue.
"Of course, we do not want to see any surprises [regarding Taiwan] during the Trump-Xi meeting," he said, adding that the government would be monitoring the summit closely.
While Trump may be less conventional in his rhetoric, both his first administration and his current term have continued to approve arms sales to Taiwan and view Taiwan as an indispensable partner in the broader US national security strategy, he said.
"We should be concerned, but not overly worried," Lin added.
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