Two Boots into China

President says US will definitely stand by Taiwan if attacked while kicking off talks on ex-China Indo-Pacific Economic Framework.

US President Joe Biden made clear that the US would fight for Taiwan if it were attacked by China during a joint press conference with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in Tokyo today.

Asked by a reporter whether the US would defend Taiwan militarily, he said, “Yes.” After a pause, he added, “That is our commitment.” That statement would appear to strip decades of strategic ambiguity from America’s China-Taiwan policy.

“We are committed to supporting peace and stability and ensuring there is no unilateral change to the status quo,” Biden said. “The US is committed and we support the One China policy, but that does not mean China has the jurisdiction to use force to take over Taiwan.”

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Hypersonic Tit for Tat

China practices hitting US warships and naval bases with hypersonic missiles while US cranks up laser weapons and “kill chain” defenses.

China has ramped up practicing hypersonic missile assaults on US warships and bases, as recent satellite photos of mock targets in Xinjiang’s Taklamakan Desert show.

Satellite photos released by the US Naval Institute this week show a string of large mock targets on the eastern edge of the desert that simulate warships such as aircraft carriers, destroyers, and naval bases.

Read more at “US, China locked in a hypersonic tit for tat”