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The White House summoned China’s ambassador Thursday to condemn Beijing’s escalating actions against Taiwan and reiterate that the United States does not want a crisis in the region after a visit to the island by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) sharply escalated tensions in the Taiwan Strait this week.
“After China’s actions last night, we called [People’s Republic of China] Ambassador Qin Gang to the White House to demarche him about the PRC’s provocative actions,” National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said in a statement provided to The Washington Post. “We condemned the PRC’s military actions, which are irresponsible and contrary to our long-standing goal of maintaining peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.” The demarche is a protest filed through diplomatic channels.
China’s show of force against Taiwan on Thursday included firing missiles into the sea and threatening the island’s territorial waters. Taiwan said China fired 11 ballistic missiles into waters off its northeast and southwest coasts, and Japanese officials said five Chinese missiles landed in Japan’s exclusive economic zone.
The White House also reiterated to Qing that it wanted to keep all lines of communication open and that nothing had changed about the United States’ one-China policy, which stipulates that there is a single Chinese entity and no independent enclaves. But the White House also stressed that it finds Beijing’s actions unacceptable and will stand up for its values in the Indo-Pacific.
The previously unreported meeting was between Qin and Kurt Campbell, deputy assistant to President Biden and coordinator for Indo-Pacific affairs on the National Security Council, according to a White House official who spoke on condition of anonymity to share details from a private a conversation.
China’s military action on Thursday raised tensions in the Taiwan Strait to their highest level in decades, raising fears of a dangerous miscalculation at one of the world’s most tense geopolitical hotspots. Beijing has openly voiced its anger at Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan, which it considers part of its territory awaiting reunification, and US-China relations have already been strained by disputes over trade, human rights and other issues.
Pelosi: Why I’m Visiting Taiwan
The White House highlighted to Qing a statement from the Group of Seven industrialized democracies, Kirby said, which emphasized that China should not use Pelosi’s visit as a pretext for aggressive military action in the Taiwan Strait. The White House also expressed support for a statement by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, that called on all countries to de-escalate tensions and start dialogue.
“We have made it clear once again, as we have done privately at the highest level and publicly: nothing has changed about our one-China policy. We’ve also made it clear that the United States is prepared for whatever Beijing decides to do,” Kirby said. “We will not seek and do not want a crisis. At the same time, we will not be deterred from acting in the seas and skies of the Western Pacific, in accordance with international law, as we have done for decades – supporting Taiwan and defending a free and open Indo-Pacific.”
China’s state broadcaster CCTV said the People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) Eastern Theater Command conducted long-range live fire and “precision strikes” exercises along the eastern parts of the strait. Taiwan’s Ministry of Defense said the PLA fired 11 Dongfeng ballistic missiles.
The White House sought to ease tensions with China before and during Pelosi’s visit, which the speaker undertook against the administration’s wishes. White House officials warned earlier this week that China was preparing for possible aggressive actions that could continue after Pelosi’s visit.
Virtually all senior members of Biden’s national security team have personally expressed deep reservations about the trip and his timing, a White House official said. They were particularly concerned because tensions between the US and China are already high and Washington is seeking China’s cooperation on the war in Ukraine and other issues.
Senior White House officials have defended Pelosi’s right to travel to Taiwan both publicly and to her counterparts in China, but some still don’t think the trip is a good idea, the official said.
China has sought to isolate Taiwan diplomatically for years. The Chinese Communist Party claims the island, a self-governing democracy that is home to more than 23 million people, as its territory, and Chinese leader Xi Jinping has vowed to “unify” Taiwan with China, by force if necessary.
Chinese ambassador: Why we opposed Pelosi’s visit
But Pelosi doubled down on Thursday, saying China would not be able to bully the island.
“They may try to prevent Taiwan from visiting or participating in other places, but they will not isolate Taiwan,” Pelosi said in Tokyo, the last stop on her tour. “They don’t meet our travel schedule. The Chinese government does not do this.
At a briefing Thursday, Kirby said the United States was responding to China’s actions.
The United States will conduct standard air and sea transits through the Taiwan Strait in the next few weeks, he said, and will take “further steps” to stand behind its allies in the region, including Japan, although he did not specify what those actions would be. was. The aircraft carrier Ronald Reagan and its battle group will remain near Taiwan to monitor the situation, Kirby added.
Lily Kuo contributed to this report.
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