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The US has urged China to stop intimidating Taiwan after Chinese fighter jets and bombers flew into the country’s air defence zone in the second warning to Beijing since Joe Biden became US president on January 20th.
“We urge Beijing to cease its military, diplomatic and economic pressure against Taiwan, and instead engage in meaningful dialogue with Taiwan’s democratically-elected representatives,” the US state department said.
Taiwan said four Chinese J-16 fighter jets, six H-6 bombers and one anti-submarine aircraft had entered its “air defence identification zone” on Saturday.
On Sunday, after the US statement, an even larger group of 15 Chinese military aircraft including 12 fighters harassed the country’s air defences, according to Taiwan’s defence ministry.
Ned Price, a state department spokesperson, said the US was concerned about China’s “pattern” of intimidating Taiwan – and other neighbours – and reminded Beijing that the US relationship with Taipei was “rock solid”.
The warning came three days after the US presidential inauguration, which was attended by Hsiao Bi-khim, Taiwan’s representative to the US. The invitation marked the first time that a de facto Taiwanese ambassador to Washington had attended an American presidential inauguration.
The weekend incursions were the biggest in more than four months, and included the largest number of Chinese bombers to enter Taiwan’s air defence identification zone for several years. They were the most significant since China sent 16 fighters, accompanied by bombers and spy planes, across the unofficial median line in the Taiwan Strait for two straight days in September when Keith Krach, then a senior US official, was visiting Taipei.
New president
The state department statement marked the second time the Biden administration has criticised Beijing, underscoring how the US-China relationship will be one of the biggest challenges for the new president. The White House this week criticised Beijing for placing sanctions on 28 Americans, including Mike Pompeo, the former secretary of state.
Ahead of the US election some critics had expressed concern that Mr Biden would not take an assertive stand towards China. But his team has already shown signs it will take China to task over a range of issues, including the repression of Muslim Uighurs in Xinjiang, the intimidation of Taiwan, and Beijing’s clampdown on the pro-democracy movement in Hong Kong.
Last month, Jake Sullivan, now national security adviser, said he was “deeply concerned” about the arrests of pro-democracy activists in Hong Kong, and accused China of conducting an “assault on Hong Kong’s freedoms”.
Appearing before the US Senate for their confirmation hearings this week, Tony Blinken, the nominee for secretary of state, and Avril Haines, the newly-installed director of national intelligence, said Washington needed to take a harsher stance towards China. Mr Blinken said he disagreed with the way Donald Trump had implemented his hawkish China policy but that the former president “was right in taking a tougher approach”.
China, which claims sovereignty over Taiwan and threatens to invade the island if Taipei refuses indefinitely to submit to its control, started crossing the Taiwan Strait with military aircraft regularly in March 2019, something both sides had largely avoided for the preceding two decades.
Daily sorties
Over the past year the People’s Liberation Army has started flying almost daily sorties into the southwestern corner of Taiwan’s air defence identification zone, an important transit area between the Chinese coast, the western Pacific and the South China Sea.
But according to reports from Taiwan’s defence minister, the majority of the sorties are by one to three surveillance or anti-submarine warfare aircraft. Only during visits by then US secretary of health Alex Azar and Mr Krach last year did China send larger numbers of planes, including fighters.
Taiwanese observers believe China’s latest sortie might be a signal of its displeasure over Ms Hsiao’s invitation to the inauguration. – Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2021