Taiwan expresses ‘sincere gratitude’ to United States for maintaining security in Taiwan strait

On Saturday, Taiwan's foreign ministry extended "sincere gratitude" to the US for taking "concrete actions" to uphold security and stability in the Taiwan Strait and the surrounding area. Kurt Campbell, the U.S. representative for the Indo-Pacific, claimed on Friday that China had "overreacted" to Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taiwan, which sparked days of war games by Beijing around the island, which China considers to be its own territory.

The "unprovoked military and economy intimidation" by China, according to a statement from Taiwan's foreign ministry on Saturday, had "further strengthened the unity and resilience of the global democratic camp." The threat of force from China has not abated, according to Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen, despite the fact that Beijing's largest-ever military exercises outside the island appeared to be winding down during Pelosi's visit last week.

Tsai claimed at a rally on Saturday in southern Taiwan that there will be "pressure from China" in addition to opposition candidates in the late November local elections. "Taiwanese are very enthusiastic and love freedom and democracy, so many good international friends have come to Taiwan to support us. This is a normal and good thing, but China threatens and intimidates Taiwan," she said.

China is still conducting military exercises close to Taiwan, albeit on a considerably lesser scale than last week. According to Taiwan's defence ministry, 13 Chinese air force aircraft crossed the Taiwan Strait's median line on Saturday. During normal times, this line serves as an informal barrier separating the two sides.

The People's Republic of China has never controlled Taiwan, according to Taiwan's government, so it has no authority to make claims about it or determine its future, which must be decided by Taiwanese citizens alone. After losing a civil war to Mao Zedong's Communist Party, which created the People's Republic of China in Beijing, the defeated Republic of China government retreated to Taiwan in 1949. China has never abandoned using force to seize control of Taiwan, which is administered democratically.

(with inputs from agencies)