China Speeding Up Plans To Invade Taiwan, U.S. Warns

Secretary of State Antony Blinken, speaking at Stanford University in California on Monday, said Beijing had made “a fundamental decision that the status quo was no longer acceptable” regarding Taiwan, Ellen Francis reported for The Washington Post.

Photo Insert: The Presidential Palace of Taiwan

Blinken accused China of speeding up plans to seize Taiwan as Chinese President Xi Jinping looks set to secure a precedent-breaking third term at a Chinese Communist Party congress this week.

“There has been a change in the approach from Beijing toward Taiwan in recent years,” Blinken told an event at Stanford University on Monday.

This includes “a fundamental decision that the status quo was no longer acceptable and that Beijing was determined to pursue reunification on a much faster timeline,” he said.

Blinken did not provide details about the claim of a shorter timeline and said China may be willing to use coercive means, a prospect that is “creating tremendous tensions.”

Responding Tuesday, the Chinese Foreign Ministry described Blinken’s comments as an example of the US reneging on its commitment to the one-China policy, which acknowledges Beijing’s position that there is only one China.

“Resolving the Taiwan question is a matter for the Chinese,” Wenbin added.

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