Former US National Security Council senior director for Asian affairs Evan Medeiros on Wednesday slammed US President Donald Trump’s Taiwan policy, saying US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson’s remarks in Beijing last week showed that the administration was “flip-flopping” on the issue.
In his state visit to Beijing, Tillerson twice said the US and China have “a very positive relationship built on nonconfrontation, no conflict, mutual respect and always searching for win-win solutions.”
Tillerson’s choice of words sparked controversy in Washington policy circles and the US media, which criticized the administration for having apparently paraphrased the language of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) proposal of a “new type of major power relations.”
US Department of State spokesman Mark Toner said that Tillerson and his staff were fully aware of the phrasing of his comments and that US policy toward Taiwan has remained unchanged.
In response, Ely Ratner, former US vice president Joe Biden’s deputy national security adviser, wrote an opinion piece in the Washington Post that said Trump is “not ready” to negotiate with Xi, adding that the administration should delay a planned summit in Florida for a month.
Some Japanese and South Korean diplomats have privately voiced their concerns over Tillerson’s comments in Beijing, saying the remarks appear to contradict the US’ commitment to regional allies that Tillerson had so recently affirmed during his visit to the two nations.
Former US National Security Council director for Asian affairs Michael Green said that, while Tillerson made a minor mistake, he did not endorse the Chinese proposal for “G2” relations, adding that he believes the summit would force the Trump administration to determine its China policy, so there is no reason to postpone it.
Alleged infighting in the Trump administration has further clouded the issue, making it difficult for foreign governments to confirm Trump’s strategic intentions, while his decision to go forward with the summit without appointing a full staff of experienced Asia-Pacific experts might lead to blunders.
Medeiros told reporters that Tillerson’s comments were “not a positive” development for Taiwan, and that Trump’s “erratic” policy should raise concerns in Taipei about what he thinks about the nation.
The administration of former US president Barack Obama avoided using the words of Chinese officials in their statements describing US-China relations, because such repetition might imply acceptance of Beijing’s agenda and accommodation of its interests, he added.
Repeating Chinese officials’ phrasing has the effect of reinforcing Beijing’s view that it “can shape and alter your approach,” Medeiros said.
He added that he doubts whether the Trump administration views Taiwan as crucial to long-term US interests, as the Obama administration did, or if it sees Taiwan as a bargaining chip to be traded to China when dealing with North Korea.
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
The High Prosecutors’ Office yesterday withdrew an appeal against the acquittal of a former bank manager 22 years after his death, marking Taiwan’s first instance of prosecutors rendering posthumous justice to a wrongfully convicted defendant. Chu Ching-en (諸慶恩) — formerly a manager at the Taipei branch of BNP Paribas — was in 1999 accused by Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾), then-president of Chia Her Industrial Co, of forging a request for a fixed deposit of US$10 million by I-Hwa Industrial Co, a subsidiary of Chia Her, which was used as collateral. Chu was ruled not guilty in the first trial, but was found guilty
A wild live dugong was found in Taiwan for the first time in 88 years, after it was accidentally caught by a fisher’s net on Tuesday in Yilan County’s Fenniaolin (粉鳥林). This is the first sighting of the species in Taiwan since 1937, having already been considered “extinct” in the country and considered as “vulnerable” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. A fisher surnamed Chen (陳) went to Fenniaolin to collect the fish in his netting, but instead caught a 3m long, 500kg dugong. The fisher released the animal back into the wild, not realizing it was an endangered species at
DEADLOCK: As the commission is unable to forum a quorum to review license renewal applications, the channel operators are not at fault and can air past their license date The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday said that the Public Television Service (PTS) and 36 other television and radio broadcasters could continue airing, despite the commission’s inability to meet a quorum to review their license renewal applications. The licenses of PTS and the other channels are set to expire between this month and June. The National Communications Commission Organization Act (國家通訊傳播委員會組織法) stipulates that the commission must meet the mandated quorum of four to hold a valid meeting. The seven-member commission currently has only three commissioners. “We have informed the channel operators of the progress we have made in reviewing their license renewal applications, and
RSS