Ahead of an island-wide presidential election that would serve as a barometer of mainland China's encroaching influence over Taiwan, which it claims as its own, the Biden administration further increased its support for Taiwan's democratic process. There will be a decision between "peace and war" in this Saturday's election, a top Chinese envoy to Taiwan has warned. Beijing has also advised Washington to stay out of the matter.
The outcome of the election will impact international commerce and geopolitics. They may possibly lead to a rise in Chinese military presence on the island, depending on the result.
The White House is getting ready for several scenarios. “Anytime we’re heading into a period of higher tension, there are of course always contingency conversations in the U.S. government,” a senior administration official said late Wednesday on a briefing with reporters. We obviously need to be ready for everything that may happen, from no reaction to the highest end, but I don't want to delve into details on them," the official said.
The White House maintains that none of the top three contenders has the endorsement of the United States. But this does not imply that Washington is remaining completely inactive.
Following the election, a senior administration official said that the United States would send a "unofficial delegation" to Taipei, the capital of Taiwan, to "face-to-face" reaffirm its alliance with the island. "It's no secret that Beijing is trying to influence the election in a number of ways and has an opinion on the result."
Beijing's least preferred option is Lai Ching-te, the nominee of the Democratic Progressive Party, who is seen to be inclined to preserve the status quo in ties with both China and the United States. Hou Yu-ih, the opposition candidate, has said that he is open to further ties with the Chinese mainland. A third contender, retired physician Ko Wen-je, was formerly Taipei's mayor and has painted himself as a centrist and pragmatic.
Taiwan has reported on China's many efforts to influence the election via economic pressure, hacking, and misinformation tactics. Washington's cautiously defiant message on Taiwan comes after two days of negotiations between China's military ministry and the Pentagon on January 8–9.
During their meeting on Wednesday, Chinese counterpart Jon Finer, the deputy national security advisor, again emphasized the United States' commitment to "peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait," among other matters.
The goal of President Joe Biden's November one-on-one meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in San Francisco was to break the acrimonious standoff that has marked U.S.-China ties in recent times. This meeting is an extension of that effort.
At the November conference, Xi made it clear that he plans to use military force to bring Taiwan back together with the Chinese mainland. China insisted that the US "stop arming Taiwan and oppose Taiwan's 'independence'" at the discussions earlier this week. The United States of America routinely provides Taiwan with millions of dollars in military help; in December, the country sent $300 million in funding, which led to Chinese penalties on American businesses.
The White House official said, "Taiwan is an important part of global supply chains." "A breach in Taiwan Strait peace and stability would be extremely detrimental to the world economy."
China has continued to apply military force on the island by using ships, balloons, military aircraft, and hovering satellites. Additionally, China withheld tax breaks for certain imports to Taiwan, alleging the island nation had broken key terms of its trade accords. It then prolonged an investigation into these alleged transgressions until January 12, the day before Taiwan's election.
The outcome of the election will impact international commerce and geopolitics. They may possibly lead to a rise in Chinese military presence on the island, depending on the result.
The White House is getting ready for several scenarios. “Anytime we’re heading into a period of higher tension, there are of course always contingency conversations in the U.S. government,” a senior administration official said late Wednesday on a briefing with reporters. We obviously need to be ready for everything that may happen, from no reaction to the highest end, but I don't want to delve into details on them," the official said.
The White House maintains that none of the top three contenders has the endorsement of the United States. But this does not imply that Washington is remaining completely inactive.
Following the election, a senior administration official said that the United States would send a "unofficial delegation" to Taipei, the capital of Taiwan, to "face-to-face" reaffirm its alliance with the island. "It's no secret that Beijing is trying to influence the election in a number of ways and has an opinion on the result."
Beijing's least preferred option is Lai Ching-te, the nominee of the Democratic Progressive Party, who is seen to be inclined to preserve the status quo in ties with both China and the United States. Hou Yu-ih, the opposition candidate, has said that he is open to further ties with the Chinese mainland. A third contender, retired physician Ko Wen-je, was formerly Taipei's mayor and has painted himself as a centrist and pragmatic.
Taiwan has reported on China's many efforts to influence the election via economic pressure, hacking, and misinformation tactics. Washington's cautiously defiant message on Taiwan comes after two days of negotiations between China's military ministry and the Pentagon on January 8–9.
During their meeting on Wednesday, Chinese counterpart Jon Finer, the deputy national security advisor, again emphasized the United States' commitment to "peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait," among other matters.
The goal of President Joe Biden's November one-on-one meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in San Francisco was to break the acrimonious standoff that has marked U.S.-China ties in recent times. This meeting is an extension of that effort.
At the November conference, Xi made it clear that he plans to use military force to bring Taiwan back together with the Chinese mainland. China insisted that the US "stop arming Taiwan and oppose Taiwan's 'independence'" at the discussions earlier this week. The United States of America routinely provides Taiwan with millions of dollars in military help; in December, the country sent $300 million in funding, which led to Chinese penalties on American businesses.
The White House official said, "Taiwan is an important part of global supply chains." "A breach in Taiwan Strait peace and stability would be extremely detrimental to the world economy."
China has continued to apply military force on the island by using ships, balloons, military aircraft, and hovering satellites. Additionally, China withheld tax breaks for certain imports to Taiwan, alleging the island nation had broken key terms of its trade accords. It then prolonged an investigation into these alleged transgressions until January 12, the day before Taiwan's election.
