#Let's do something# After the Taiwan regional election officially came to an end, the United States took a series of actions on the Taiwan issue, such as US Secretary of State Blinken congratulated Lai Qingde at the first time, but Biden also reiterated that the US "one China" policy has not changed and does not support "Taiwan independence". At the same time, the Biden administration also sent a delegation composed of former senior government officials to visit Taiwan, and Rosenberg, chairman of the American Institute in Taiwan, also said that "Taiwan's status is undecided."
At that time, the outside world viewed that the United States would continue to practice the so-called "strategic ambiguity" on the Taiwan issue, that is, acquiescing in the DPP authorities' promotion of the development of "Taiwan independence," while on the other hand, it would continue to use the "one China" policy to stabilize the mainland and ensure that the situation in the Taiwan Strait would not be stormy.
However, judging from the current US Government's stance and a series of actions on our part, in addition to hoping to maintain the status quo between the two sides of the strait, the United States is also constantly putting a "tight spell" on Lai Qingde, drawing a red line for him, and demanding that Lai Qingde restrain himself and not become a "troublemaker." How to understand the US approach?
China's Taiwan Network recently published a commentary article titled "The US Delegation Slaps Lai Qingde in the Face, Where is Taiwan's Road". The article pointed out that the day after the election on the island, the Biden administration sent a large delegation of former senior government officials to visit Taiwan.
However, judging from the contents of the announcement, there is actually only one core topic for this delegation, that is, the cross-strait issue after Lai Qingde is elected. The US side reiterated that the relationship between the United States and Taiwan is an informal friendly relationship. Of course, this delegation also revealed an extraordinary message, hoping that the two sides of the strait can hold peaceful dialogues and oppose any side unilaterally changing the current status quo in the Taiwan Strait.
Combined with Biden's previous policy statements on the cross-strait issue, in fact, this statement is meaningful. Earlier, the White House said that if the two sides of the strait can use peaceful means to achieve reunification, then the United States does not hold a position on this issue, which is also regarded as an official statement by the United States on the issue of not supporting "Taiwan independence." In fact, this also reflects the United States' distrust of the DPP's Lai Ching-te, or its concern about the cross-strait line after he takes office.
Lai Qingde
As a "troublemaker," Lai Ching-te's cross-strait policy is more radical than that of any previous leader in the Taiwan region, including Lee Teng-hui, the godfather of "Taiwan independence." Therefore, after Lai Qingde is elected, it means that the possibility of conflict in the Taiwan Strait has increased, the United States may be dragged into a direct military conflict with China, and the United States Taiwan policy may also fall into passivity.
In order to prevent such a situation from happening, the United States has two countermeasures: One is to put pressure on the mainland not to undermine the status quo between the two sides of the strait and not to "reunify by force"; and the other is to draw a red line and put a "tight spell" on Lai Qingde, demanding that he not go further and further down the road of "Taiwan independence."
In addition, the warming of Sino-US relations has not come easily, which is also an important reason for the Biden administration to give Lai Qingde a "preventive shot". Last year, the Chinese and US heads of state reached a series of consensus in San Francisco, which means that China-US relations are starting to get back on track. A series of official dialogues between China and the United States are resuming. Especially since the beginning of the year, the frequency and scale of high-level work meetings and phone calls between the two sides have increased.
U.S.-China relations
For example, on January 8 and 9, the U.S.-China military work conference was held at the Pentagon for the first time in four years. On January 11, Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao and U.S. Commerce Secretary Raimondo held a conference call. On January 12, the head of the International Liaison Department of the CPC Central Committee visited the United States and held a meeting with Blinken. After that, the Chinese and U.S. Ministries of Finance held a financial work conference. Since the beginning of this year, in just over 20 days, China and the United States have held a number of high-level and high-level meetings, and the interaction has been very frequent.
For neither the United States nor China, this hard-won détente does not want to be broken. Moreover, after the election in the Taiwan region, the two sides basically did not take much action on the Taiwan issue, and even Lai Qingde, who was beaten, no longer shouted "Taiwan independence" with his mouth closed, and even said that he hoped to hold a dialogue with the mainland.
What does this mean that the situation in the Taiwan Strait is in a state of cooling? It shows that China and the United States have already passed each other's breath before the elections in the Taiwan region, and the United States has made certain concessions, otherwise the Biden administration would not have made a clear statement on the issue of "peaceful reunification" and even put a "tight spell" on Lai Qingde
Blinken
In fact, Blinken's remarks in an interview during the World Economic Forum in Davos also confirm this statement.
Blinken said at the time that maintaining peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait is in the interests of the United States and the world, which is determined by Taiwan's unique geographical location and important position in the semiconductor field. In addition, he expressed the hope that any differences between the mainland and Taiwan can be resolved through dialogue and communication, so as to ensure long-term peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.
To some extent, Blinken's statement is actually a reiteration of Biden's previous position on the issue of "peaceful reunification" of Taiwan.
In fact, in 2022, Pelosi's brazen visit to Taiwan despite warnings has had a huge impact on China-US relations and the situation in the Taiwan Strait, which has been so great that even the United States feels very uncomfortable.
Although the United States likes to play the "Taiwan card", it has not crossed the bottom line, and the United States hopes that the status quo will be maintained in the Taiwan Strait, at least until it completes the "porcupine strategy".