On August 2 (Local Time), United States National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby said that they do not support independent Taiwan. The statement came amidst a much-anticipated visit of US Speaker Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan that has been opposed extensively by the government of China.
During the press briefing, Kirby repeatedly mentioned that the US’s stand on independent Taiwan has not changed, and they support the ‘One China’ theory. One of the reports asked about the tweet Speaker Pelosi made stating, “America stands with Taiwan”. He said it is a well-known fact that Taiwan wants to be recognized as an independent nation. When the Speaker said America stands with Taiwan, “how can the Chinese construe that as anything else but that you’re supporting independence?”
Reporter: “You keep telling us … that the United States does not support an independent Taiwan .. [Speaker Pelosi’s] post actually states ‘America stands with Taiwan’.”
— Washington Free Beacon (@FreeBeacon) August 2, 2022
Kirby: “I’ll let the Speaker speak for herself … we do not support Taiwan independence.” pic.twitter.com/dU2tKGwhus
Refusing to speak for Speaker Pelosi, Kirby said, “Nothing has changed about our adherence to the One China policy. Nothing has changed about our stance on Taiwan’s independence, which is that we do not support Taiwan’s independence. And nothing has changed, James, about our commitments and how seriously we take those commitments under the Taiwan Relations Act.”
Further, when pressed if her statement misstated administration policy, Kirby asked the reporter to talk to Pelosi about the statements she made. Furthermore, he refused to speak for Pelosi but did not say he “did not support her language”. “I’m not going to speak for Speaker Pelosi. That’s beyond my writ,” he added. Kirby said, “I can speak for the administration when it comes to national security policy, and nothing has changed about our policy.”
Kirby refused to say anything about communication with China
During the press briefing, Kirby was asked if there was any line of communication between the US and China over Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan. He said, “I don’t have any specific conversations with the PRC leaders to speak to today. But we have an ambassador there. We have an embassy. We are in routine communication with leaders in Beijing. But I would refer you to the State Department for anything that they might or might not have communicated.”
About President supporting her visit and statement, Kirby only stated that “the President fully respects the right and the prerogative and the responsibility of members of Congress, to include the Speaker of the House, to travel overseas.”
Kirby was also asked about the sanctions China has imposed on Taiwan over Pelosi’s visit. Reportedly, around 100 Taiwanese brands have been banned by China. He was asked if Taiwan might end up paying a steep price for the US visit. Kirby said the chances of happening were low. “As we said today and yesterday, no reason for China to take what is a perfectly legitimate and consistent travel by the Speaker of the House and turn it into some pretext for amping up the tensions or creating some sort of crisis or conflict,” he said.
He emphasized the fact that the US does not support Taiwan’s independence, but the US does support Taiwan’s self-defence. He said, “In keeping with the Taiwan Relations Act, we’re going to keep doing that. And we’re going to keep working on revitalizing our alliances and partnerships in the region for a free and open Indo-Pacific.”
He pointed out that the President was keeping an eye on the visits to Asian countries, but generally, the President does not comment on trips of Congress members. “He welcomes her conversations. He welcomes her contributions to American foreign policy and our foreign policy objectives overseas. But, I mean, the trip is not even over yet, so I think we ought to give the Speaker a chance to talk about what she did, what she learned, and what she took away from this trip when she gets back” he added.
Kirby was asked if the US was planning for military repercussions of the US visit to Taiwan, but he refused to comment. “I’m not going to talk about force posture or military movements one way or the other,” he said. He also referred the reporter to the State Department, who asked him about the reports that China had summoned US Ambassador Burns in the middle of the night over Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan.
Pelosi tweeted ‘America stands with Taiwan’
US Speaker Nancy Pelosi has visited Taiwan despite of strong opposition by China. After arriving in Taiwan, Pelosi wrote in a Tweet, “Our visit reiterates that America stands with Taiwan: a robust, vibrant democracy and our important partner in the Indo-Pacific.”
Our visit reiterates that America stands with Taiwan: a robust, vibrant democracy and our important partner in the Indo-Pacific. pic.twitter.com/2sSRJXN6ST
— Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) August 2, 2022
Notably, in the official statement, she pointed out her visit had no effect on the Taiwan Relations Act of 1979. She said, “Our visit is one of several Congressional delegations to Taiwan – and it in no way contradicts longstanding United States policy, guided by the Taiwan Relations Act of 1979, U.S.-China Joint Communiques and the Six Assurances. The United States continues to oppose unilateral efforts to change the status quo.”
