- Chinese state media said the country’s military conducted assault drills near Taiwan on Tuesday in response to “interference from external forces.”
- Rodger Baker of Stratfor said the exercise coincided with Chinese state media reports that attempted to paint the U.S. as a “weak and unreliable power” in Afghanistan.
- The U.S. State Department told that Taiwan and Afghanistan are two “very different” policy issues. “We have an abiding interest in peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait,” a spokesperson said.
In an effort to bring Taiwan closer, China is trying to portray the United States as an inexhaustible weakness - by highlighting Afghanistan's rapid occupation of Taliban, a political analyst told.
Rodger Baker, Stratfor's senior vice president of strategic analysis, noted that the recent military exercises in China near Taiwan came at a time when Chinese media were trying to paint the U.S. "As a weak and unreliable force" in Afghanistan.
The ruling Chinese Communist Party in Beijing claims to have ruled Taiwan as a rebel province that needs to be repatriated. The U.S. It does not have a formal working relationship with the state of Taiwan, but the U.S. He is an important international supporter and supplier of weapons. Beijing opposes that.
Chinese media outlets The Global Times published Monday's editorial blaming Afghanistan's government defeat for the withdrawal of U.S. troops. The document suggested that the US would not defend Taiwan if Beijing invaded the island, and Taiwan could see the same "fate" as Afghanistan.
The Chinese military conducted an offensive test near Taiwan on Tuesday in response to "foreign military interference," Chinese media reported.
"So you're looking at the job, putting it in a position where the Chinese allow state media to report that the United States will leave Taiwan as soon as it leaves Afghanistan," Baker told "Squawk Box Asia" on Wednesday.
"And the Chinese can use that to create ideas in Taiwan that there is no way forward for freedom and they should think hard about their relationship with the continent," he added.
Clearly, the Chinese Communist Party has never ruled Taiwan - but in recent months Beijing has stepped up military and political pressure on Taiwan to accept Chinese rule.
The U.S. ‘It has a lasting interest’ in the stability of Taiwan
A spokesman for the U.S. Department of State told CNBC that Taiwan and Afghanistan are two “very different” policies. A spokesman said the U.S. It has traveled to Afghanistan "to deal with terrorist attacks on 9/11," and its policy on Taiwan focuses on maintaining "peace and stability" in the Taiwan Strait.
The Taiwan Strait - about 100 miles [160 km] wide at its narrowest point - separates Taiwan from the mainland of China.
“We have a strong desire for peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait. We see this as central to the security and stability of the wider Indo-Pacific region. Events elsewhere in the world will not change this lasting interest, ”said the speaker.
Taiwan also retaliated against China.
Prime Minister Su Tseng-chang on Tuesday said Taiwan would not fall down like Afghanistan in the event of an attack, and warned "foreign troops" not to be "deceived" into thinking they could attack the island, according to Reuters.
"It is very difficult" to draw parallels between Afghanistan and Taiwan, said Ian Johnson, Stephen A. Schwarzman, who is in charge of Chinese studies at the Council on International Relations.
"But it is true that it will make it easier for China to argue that the United States does not stand by its word and that ... at the end of the day, it loses interest and loses patience and leaves, abandoning its commitment," he said.
U.S. Relations With Taiwan
The U.S. Taiwan also has no formal defense agreement and Washington has no legal obligation to help Taiwan if the island is attacked.
However, with the law on relations in Taiwan, the U.S. It is committed to giving Taiwan the arms of a “defensive character” and maintaining peace and stability in the Western Pacific.
Baker said the administration of President Joe Biden would remain unclear whether he would defend Taiwan if Beijing used force against the island.
“I would say that managers will probably continue to be confusing rather than following a specific path,” the analyst said.
"It is expected that if you say openly if there is a Taiwanese invasion and the US intervenes, that will be seen by China as a clear commitment by the United States to preserve or protect Taiwan's independence as a separate organization. ”
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