In meeting, U.S. voices concerns over China's actions in Taiwan Strait

ROC Central News Agency

03/15/2022 01:50 PM

Washington, March 14 (CNA) U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan expressed concerns about Beijing's "provocative" activities across the Taiwan Strait during talks with his Chinese counterpart Yang Jiechi (楊潔篪) on Monday, according to a senior Biden administration official.

The talks, which were held in Rome, focused heavily on the war between Russia and Ukraine, and took place over an "intense, seven-hour session," reflecting the gravity of the situation, the official said during a background call with reporters.

The sides also discussed recent "escalatory actions" taken by North Korea and the need for the U.S. and China to manage their competition so that it does not veer into conflict, according to the official.

As relates to Taiwan, the U.S. official said that Sullivan had "underscored concerns about Beijing' courses and provocative actions across the Taiwan Strait."

He also reiterated Washington's one-China policy "based on the Taiwan Relations Act, Three Communiqués and Six Assurances," the official said, referring to the series of commitments that form the basis of U.S. ties with both China and Taiwan.

Yang, meanwhile, urged the U.S. to recognize "the high sensitivity of the Taiwan question" and to abide by the one-China principle, rather than "going further down the dangerous path" of supporting Taiwan independence, according to China's state-run Xinhua news agency.

On Tuesday, Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said it had received briefings from the U.S. both before and after the meeting between Sullivan and Yang, but declined to comment on what it was told.

The Taiwan Relations Act (TRA) was enacted in 1979 to maintain commercial, cultural and other unofficial relations between the U.S. and Taiwan after Washington switched diplomatic recognition from Taipei to Beijing. The TRA also requires the U.S. "to provide Taiwan with arms of a defensive character."

The Three Communiqués are a series of joint statements issued by the U.S. and China in 1972, 1979 and 1982 to define the nature of the countries' bilateral relationship, particularly after they established diplomatic ties in 1979.

The Six Assurances, which were given by former U.S. President Ronald Reagan to Taiwan in 1982, include pledges not to set a date for ending arms sales to Taiwan, not to hold prior consultations with China regarding arms sales to Taiwan, and not to play a mediation role between Taiwan and China.

They also include assurances that the U.S. will not revise the Taiwan Relations Act or pressure Taiwan to enter into negotiations with China.

The U.S. has maintained that it is committed to each of the documents, while China has often complained that the TRA and Six Assurances contravene the Three Communiqués.

(By Stacy Hsu, Joseph Yeh and Matthew Mazzetta)

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