China halts military and climate dialogue with US over Taiwan issue

Asia-Pacific, News, US August 6, 2022 , by IRIA No Comments

China has decided to cut off contacts with the United States on vital issues including military and crucial climate cooperation, indicating Beijing’s aggressive approach toward the U.S over the Taiwan crisis.

China’s foreign ministry said it was also suspending exchanges with Washington on countering cross-border crime and drug trafficking.

The announcement came after Beijing conducted military drills surrounding the island of Taiwan in reaction to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s Taiwan visit, making her the highest-level US visitor in 25 years to the self-governed island that Beijing regards as its territory.

Tensions are running high in the Taiwan Strait where China has conducted massive military drills forcing several vessels to reroute their journeys, causing disruptions to regional and global economies. China’s Eastern Theater Command of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) said in a statement it conducted air and sea drills to the north, southwest, and east of Taiwan on August 5 “to test the troops’ joint combat capabilities.”

Taiwan’s defense ministry said a total of 68 Chinese military aircraft and 13 navy ships had conducted missions in the strait. The ministry also said that it scrambled jets to warn away Chinese aircraft that it said entered the island’s air defense zone

PLA Army — ^{The army of the Eastern Theater Command of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) conducted long-range live-fire drills targeting designated areas on the eastern part of the Taiwan Strait on August 4 and achieved desired results. (Image Credit: PLA handout via Xinhua)}

U.S. calls China’s move ‘irresponsible’

The US said on Friday that China’s decision to halt cooperation in a number of critical areas was “fundamentally irresponsible.”

“There’s nothing here for the United States to rectify. The Chinese can go a long way to taking the tensions down simply by stopping these provocative military exercises and ending the rhetoric,” said White House national security spokesperson John Kirby.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has accused China of “irresponsible steps” by halting key communication channels with Washington. China’s retaliation in stopping bilateral processes in eight key areas including defense, narcotics control, transnational crime, and climate change.

“Those include several military-to-military channels, which are vital for avoiding miscommunication and avoid crisis … Suspending climate cooperation doesn’t punish the United States, it punishes the world, particularly the developing world. We should not hold hostage cooperation on matters of global concern because of differences between our two countries,” he said. Tackling climate change has been a key area of cooperation between the two superpowers.

Blinken is is on a five-nation tour of Southeast Asia and Africa this week. In their meeting in Phnom Penh on the sidelines Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, the U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong, and Japanese Foreign Minister Hayashi Yoshimasa urged China to immediately cease military exercises. In a joint statement, they “expressed their concern about the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) recent actions that gravely affect international peace and stability, including the use of large-scale military exercises.”

.@SecBlinken on the situation in the Taiwan Strait: We’ve seen how Beijing has attempted to change the status quo on Taiwan for some time—now they’ve taken dangerous acts to a new level. There is no justification for this extreme, disproportionate & escalatory military response. pic.twitter.com/UgbhZbpwoU
— Department of State (@StateDept) August 5, 2022

China says the U.S. bears full responsibility for recent actions

Qin Gang, Chinese Ambassador to the United States, has said the US “must bear full responsibility for the current situation across the Taiwan Straits”, Chinese state media reported. China’s actions in the waters around Taiwan are “necessary and legitimate measures to deter separatist forces on the island, safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity. With prior warnings, the Chinese side matches its words with actions,” Qin was quoted as saying by Global Times.

However, Chinese experts said that the disruption of military-to-military communication channels between China and the U.S. does not mean the two militaries have entirely canceled all communication channels as the hotline is still functional and emergency talks can still be conducted.