US President, Joe Biden, has committed his country to the defence of Taiwan, if the island nation were to be attacked by China.
Biden was speaking at a townhall hosted by CNN. A participant asked Biden if the US would protect Taiwan in the event of a Chinese invasion with Biden replying in the affirmative. The host of the debate, Anderson Cooper, later asked a similar question, with Biden saying: ‘Yes, we have a commitment to do that.’
However, the White House said that this does not reflect a change in foreign policy towards Taiwan and China, with the US being deliberately vague on what it would do if a war had to break out in the region, a policy called ‘strategic ambiguity’.
Tensions between the US and China have been increasing in recent times with Beijing using increasingly belligerent language as well as using fighter jets to intrude on Taiwanese airspace.
In addition, China recently tested a hypersonic glider which could carry a nuclear payload, a development which has shaken the American defence community. A glider has the advantage of being more manoeuvrable than a traditional rocket as well as being less detectable by radar.