Conflicts & War

Taiwan is strengthening its military ties with US: Tsai

Beijing, Feb 21 (EFE).- Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen said Tuesday that the island is strengthening its military ties with the United States to prevent the expansion of authoritarianism.

Tsai made these remarks during a meeting with a visiting delegation of US lawmakers, including Democrats Ro Khanna of California, Jake Auchincloss of Massachusetts, and Jonathan Jackson of Illinois, as well as Republican Tony Gonzales of Texas.

Taiwan will cooperate with the US and other democratic allies to face global challenges such as authoritarianism and climate change, Tsai said in a video broadcast by state news agency CNA.

The Taiwanese leader said that the island and Washington have deepened exchanges in various fields, including technology and security, and hoped that the two nations build a more resilient technological industrial chain.

Ro Khana, who heads the delegation, said that the visit was aimed at boosting and deepening the economic and defense partnership between Washington and Taipei.

He added that US President Joe Biden continues to seek peace in the region.

Tsai Ing-wen recently announced that the four-month mandatory military service for men will be extended to one year from 2024, noting that the island is on “the front lines of the expansion of authoritarianism.”

Tensions between Taipei and Beijing escalated last year on account of then US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s fleeting visit to the island, which Beijing called a “farce” and a “deplorable betrayal.”

Taiwan has been considered a sovereign territory with its own government and political system under the name of the Republic of China since the end of the civil war between nationalists and communists in 1949, but Beijing maintains it is a rebel province and insists on reunification.

The island is also one of the biggest sources of conflict between China and the US mainly because Washington is Taiwan’s main arms supplier and would be its greatest military ally in the event of a possible war with China. EFE

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