BEIJING – China’s central government in Beijing would only use force as a “last resort” for Taiwan’s reunification, a retired People’s Liberation Army official said.
“The Chinese EPL is growing stronger and we have geographical proximity,” said Zhou Bo, now a senior member of the Center for Strategy and International Security Studies at Tsinghua University.
“That doesn’t suggest we use force easily because that would be the last resort,” he told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Asia” on Tuesday. “We sincerely wish to reunite with our compatriots in Taiwan by peaceful means.”
Taiwan is a democratically self-governing island that Beijing considers part of its territory.
On Monday, U.S. President Joe Biden said he would be willing to use military force to defend Taiwan, an apparent break with Washington’s tradition of intentionally remaining vague about whether the U.S. would come to the island’s aid if the U.S. China was invading.
Biden and the White House later said the comments did not reflect a change in policy.
“China expresses strong dissatisfaction and strong opposition to statements by the United States,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said in response, according to an official English transcript of a session. informative monday.
Wang reiterated that the Taiwan issue is an internal matter. “No one should underestimate the strong determination, determination and ability of the Chinese people to safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity,” he said. “No one should oppose the 1.4 billion Chinese.”
Encouraging China to react
Biden’s comments about military force are “testing China” for his reaction, so US allies would know how to react, Dennis Weng, an associate professor of political science at Sam Houston State University, said Wednesday. CNBC’s “Squawk Box Asia.”
The United States’ willingness to defend Taiwan is based on the condition that China change “the so-called status quo,” Weng said. “If China does not change the status quo, the strategic ambiguity will remain.”
For more than 40 years, US “one-China policy” has recognized Beijing as China’s sole legal government. Meanwhile, the United States maintains unofficial relations with Taiwan, with a policy of ensuring that the island has the resources to defend itself.
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It is important to remember that Biden was describing a “hypothetical situation,” said Susan Thornton, a retired U.S. diplomat and senior member of the Yale Law School Paul Tsai China Center.
“It’s unfortunate that everyone is still talking about an invasion of Taiwan, militarizing this situation,” Thornton told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Asia” on Wednesday. “There should be no imminent crisis in Taiwan, and the more we talk about it, the more we turn to it, in my opinion.”
Beijing has said it is aiming for peaceful reunification with Taiwan. On Tuesday, Zhou cited China’s “anti-secession law” for the conditions under which Beijing would use force.
“Unless and until Taiwan declares independence, unless and until an external force separates Taiwan from China, or until the possibility of peaceful reunification is completely exhausted,” he said, “otherwise we would not do so. serve the force “.
“Of course, if the Taiwan authorities [are] against this possibility of indefinite reunification, of course we must be well prepared, “Zhou said.” We are not sorry. “
The commercial power of China
Biden was in Tokyo this week as his administration seeks to establish political ties in the region as part of a stumbling block to China’s growing growth.
The United States on Monday announced an Indo-Pacific economic framework with 12 more partner countries in the region, including Australia, Japan and the Republic of Korea. The framework is not a trade agreement, but an agreement to create international standards on issues such as the digital economy and working conditions.
Taiwan and Beijing are not part of the initial participating group.
“We need to seek cooperation with all Asia-Pacific and Indo-Pacific countries, not just one party,” said He Weiwen, a senior member of the Beijing-based China and Globalization think tank.
Countries in the region are members of other groupings, such as the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, or RCEP, a free trade agreement between 15 countries that went into effect in January. The US is not a member, while China is.
China’s trade with the other 14 RCEP members far exceeded that of the United States with the same countries, CNBC’s “Street Signs Asia” said on Tuesday.
The new Indo-Pacific economic framework, or IPEF, “seems to cover all the major trade issues of the 21st century,” said He, a former trade adviser at the Chinese embassy in New York and San Francisco. “But it’s not a trade deal yet. It’s still a concept at the moment and we’ll have to wait and see how it evolves.”
– CNBC’s Su-Lin Tan contributed to this report.