Taiwan urges Australia to send military attachés

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
25 Jun 2023 18:44

The US, Japan, and Singapore have always kept their attachés in Taipei to maintain connections with Taiwanese intelligence services.

Taiwan's foreign minister Joseph Wu during an interview with AP at the Ministry of foreign affairs in Taipei on December 10, 2019. (AP)

Taiwanese Foreign Minister Joseph Wu on Sunday told The Australian newspaper that Taiwan asks Australia to send a military attache to the island so that both parties may share their assessment of the situation with China.

During an interview, Wu explained that he believes it is "very important" in order for the two nations to pay closer attention "to the regional security issues for the two countries to be able to share their observations, and their assessment of the situation."

The US, Japan, and Singapore have always kept their attaches in Taipei to maintain a connection with Taiwanese intelligence services.

Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles pointed out in March that Australia has made no promises to the United States that it would support it in any future conflict over Taiwan in exchange for US nuclear-powered submarines.

Last week, Chinese Central Foreign Affairs Office Director Wang Yi told US Secretary of State Antony Blinken during their meeting that Beijing will not compromise on the Taiwan issue and that the US must respect the sovereignty of China.

He added that the US must respect the one-China principle as per the three joint US-China communiques, respect China's sovereignty and territorial integrity, and oppose Taiwan separatism.

Relations between the two largest economies have deteriorated rapidly in the past years. The trade war on China, which was launched during former US President Donald Trump's term, was stretched by Biden's administration to include a military escalation against Beijing in the South China Sea, including violating the "one China" policy and deepening relations with Taiwan.

Biden's administration also launched a tech offensive against China's chip industry, bringing together its allies to join in on the efforts to curb the Asian giant's developing semiconductor sector.

The conflict between the two countries also raised concerns over a possible military clash that might lead to an all-out world war.