[ SCMP ] Taiwan asserts island’s sovereignty after US restates opposition to independence

“We support a strong unofficial relationship with Taiwan. We do not support Taiwan independence,” Kurt Campbell, the White House Coordinator for the Indo-Pacific, said in response to the question “how much love is too much?” when it came to stronger US ties with Taiwan.

The comment, at an event hosted by the Asia Society, was the first public statement on the issue by an official from the Biden administration.

It was also Campbell’s first public comment on the Taiwan issue since Chinese President Xi Jinping vowed last week at the Communuist Party’s 100th anniversary celebrations to crush any attempt to block the “reunification” of Taiwan with the mainland, which sees the island as part of its territory.

“We fully recognise and understand the sensitivities involved here,” Campbell said.

“We do believe that Taiwan has a right to live in peace. We want to see its international role, particularly in areas like vaccines and issues associated with the pandemic, they should have a role to play here, they should not be shunned in the international community,” Campbell said.

On Wednesday, Taiwan’s foreign ministry thanked Campbell for supporting Taiwan’s participation in international affairs.

Foreign ministry spokeswoman Joanne Ou also thanked the US for its “timely donation” of 2.5 million doses of Covid-19 vaccine.

She said the Biden administration has many times voiced its “rock-solid” support for Taiwan since taking office in January and has actively rallied support from its allies to maintain peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait. As a reliable partner, Taiwan will closely cooperate with the US on various global issues, she added.

Ou stopped short of commenting on Campbell’s remarks on independence, but stressed: “The Republic of China [Taiwan’s official name] is a sovereign state and not a part of the People’s Republic of China and this is a fact and also a reality.”

She said Taiwan will approach cross-strait relations in a prudent and pragmatic manner, and would do all it could to defend its free and democratic system.