Taiwan’s Defense Minister Wellington Ku says it’s in the US “national interest” to maintain the status quo in Asia.
Taiwan has said it is “impossible” for the US to retreat from the Asia-Pacific despite the US president’s doubts about its willingness to support Washington’s security commitment.
“We certainly have a deep understanding that we are not only not able to speak about values, as we are aware of the rapidly changing, tricky international situation and not only cannot speak about the value,” Taiwan’s Defense Minister Wellington Ku told reporters Monday.
“So we have to ask: Is it a central US national interest to maintain peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region, including the current state of the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea?” Koo said.
“I don’t think it’s possible for the US to retreat from the Indo-Pacific.
Ku also said that Taiwan will continue to rely on “deterrents and forces to achieve peace” with China.
Ku’s remarks came after Trump ordered a moratorium on all military aid to Ukraine with a dramatic escalation of spat with Ukrainian President Voldimi Zelensky.
Until now, Washington was Ukraine’s top military supporter in the war with Russia.
The United States does not formally recognize Taiwan as a country, but it is obligated to provide Taipei with a means of protecting itself under the Taiwan Relations Act of 1979.
Trump’s long-standing willingness to overturn US relations has heightened fear that he could do the same in East Asia.
Taiwan is an important part of the US “First Island Chain” defense strategy, an imaginary line running from Malaysia to Japan, and is expected to contain China from its expansion into the Pacific Ocean.
Self-excluded islands are also next to the most important waterways for international trade.
In 2022, 88% of the world’s largest ships by tonnage passed through the Taiwan Strait, according to Risk Intelligence, a Danish-based corporate intelligence company.
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