China tells US it will never compromise on Taiwan as defense talks resume

This week, Chinese and U.S. officials held military talks for the first time since the channel was suspended in 2022, with China informing the United States that it would not make “any concessions or compromises” regarding the autonomous island nation of Taiwan.

Michael Chase, the Pentagon's top Chinese official, said Tuesday he will hold two days of talks with China's Maj. Gen. Song Yanchao, as tensions rise in the Indo-Pacific region following Taiwan's crucial election day on Saturday and clashes between China and the Philippines. finished. region.

According to reports, Yan Chao, deputy director of the International Military Cooperation Office of China's Central Military Commission, told Chase that the Chinese government intends to “develop healthy and stable military relations.” read out loud From the Chinese Ministry of Defense.

However, Yan Chao said the US should take China's considerations seriously and called on the US government to take a hard line against Taiwan and stop supplying arms to Taipei and supporting independence.

During the meeting, Yan Chao “stressed that China will not make any concessions or compromises on the Taiwan issue.”

Chase, the Pentagon's assistant secretary of defense for China, Taiwan, and Mongolia, said the U.S. has an “unofficial” relationship with Taiwan under the 1979 law that recognizes Taiwan as part of China. He said he supports the “one China” policy. according to, Pentagon reading. He also said US support for Indo-Pacific allies remains “ironclad.”

The talks followed a high-stakes meeting between President Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping in November, during which the two sides agreed to restore military communications.

China suspended military channels after a Chinese reconnaissance balloon flew over the U.S. mainland in February last year and then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) visited Taiwan in August 2022. The relationship that had been strained was normalized.

In the wake of Biden and Xi's meeting, Gen. Charles Q. Brown, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, last month held the first high-level military talks with the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff since China shut down the channel.

However, the leaders of the two superpowers failed to make any significant progress, and tensions in the Indo-Pacific and Taiwan remained unresolved. During their meeting in San Francisco, Mr. Jinping reportedly told Mr. Biden that China intended to unify with Taipei, a promise he repeatedly emphasized in his year-end speech.

This week, officials also discussed clashes between the Chinese navy and the U.S.-aligned Philippines over disputed areas of the South China Sea. Last year, China attacked Philippine ships with water cannons and lasers.

Chase “stressed the importance of respecting freedom of navigation on the high seas,” the Pentagon statement said. He also criticized China for “harassing Philippine vessels operating legally in the South China Sea.”

However, despite an international arbitrator's ruling against China's claims, China claims almost all of the South China Sea and claims the Philippines is violating its territorial sovereignty.

Beijing also frequently complains that the United States is strengthening its military ties with allies across the Indo-Pacific, accusing the United States of escalating tensions in a Cold War spirit.

In talks this week, Yan Chao “urged the US side to reduce its military presence and provocations in the South China Sea, and stop supporting provocative acts,” according to the Chinese Defense Ministry.