On the second day of the phone call between US President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping, on September 10, the Financial Times cited multiple unnamed sources to reveal that Washington is “seriously considering” Taiwan’s request to represent it. The office was renamed from the “Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the United States” (Taiwan Representative Office).
According to the report, Kurt Campbell, the White House Coordinator for Indo-Pacific Affairs, supported the name change, and the request for the name change was also widely supported by the National Security Council and the Asian affairs officials of the State Department. However, this matter has not yet been finalized.
The CCP claims that Taiwan is part of Chinese territory and does not allow Taiwan to use names with sovereign meanings in the world. Recently, Lithuania allowed the CCP to recall its ambassador to Lithuania for allowing the establishment of a “Taiwan Representative Office” and retaliated against Lithuania economically.
A few hours after the call with Xi, it came out that Washington was considering such a sensitive and heavy news. Wang Kunyi, chairman of the Taiwan International Institute of Strategic Studies, analyzed that it can be seen that Biden played a two-handed strategy. Throw a bomb for you one day.”
International relations scholar Luo Qingsheng analyzed the Central News Agency and pointed out that from a timeline, Biden wanted to show a tough stance against Beijing in order to explain to the country and restore his prestige. He may also mention this during the phone call with Xi Jinping. “Hello, hit the front.”
Xi Jinping did not raise the Taiwan issue in the call to worship Xi issued by the Chinese Communist Party’s official media Xinhua News Agency. But Xinhua News Agency said that Biden told Xi Jinping that “the United States has never intended to change the one-China policy.” However, the White House briefing did not confirm whether Biden made this statement. The briefing only stated that President Biden emphasized the United States‘ concern for peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region and the world.
In addition to considering rectifying the name of the Taiwan office, the aforementioned report by the Financial Times also stated that senior U.S. and Taiwan officials held a “Special Channel” secret meeting in Annapolis, the capital of Maryland, on September 10th. , Taiwan’s National Security Advisor and Minister of Foreign Affairs Wu Zhaoxie attended the meeting.
This “special channel” talks are traditionally conducted in a low-key manner to avoid irritating Beijing. This time it was released to the media in advance. This is also the first time that the Biden administration has held face-to-face talks with high-level Taiwan officials since it took office.
Regarding the call to visit Xi on the evening of September 9, observers believe that Xi Jinping and Biden are currently in difficulties in China. Xi Jinping is struggling with internal strife and economic difficulties. He has to fight for 20 Dalian appointments. . Biden’s approval rating plummeted because of a series of ultra-left policies and the embarrassing withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan. This is an important background for the smooth progress of the call between the two of them.
Chen Yixin, an honorary professor of the Department of Diplomacy and International Relations at Tamkang University in Taiwan, also believes that Biden’s call with Xi Jinping at this time is mainly related to the G20 summit next month in addition to avoiding conflicts. He hopes to confirm whether the two sides will hold a sideline summit by then. “.
Chen Yixin also told Free Asia that the third significance of Biden’s call is because the United States was a little bit embarrassed after the withdrawal of troops in Afghanistan, and the CCP has so far taken the lead in the Afghan issue.
Editor in charge: Yuan Ming Qing
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