OPINION:
President Biden had no choice but to break from the policy of “strategic ambiguity” at this time (“Biden: U.S. would intervene with military to defend Taiwan,” Web, May 23). Anything less could be interpreted by China as an invitation to invade Taiwan, and Biden would have been savagely attacked for caving to the mainland Chinese threat.
Once China started threatening Taiwan, there was only one reasonable policy response: Remind China of the dual deterrence condition. So it isn’t Mr. Biden who has changed U.S. policy; it is Chinese belligerence that has done so. Ambiguity invites disaster and makes America look weak and indecisive. Taiwan is far more likely to assert and strengthen itself, which should be a goal of U.S. policy.
The U.S. has more interests in Taiwan than it does in Ukraine. Taiwan today is a much more important player of Western supply chains than it was in 1979. A Chinese accession of Taiwan would be much more disruptive to U.S. industry than the war in Ukraine. This seems like a smart move by Mr. Biden, lest the Chinese think that the United States has diminished capacity or will to protect Taiwan because of its support for Ukraine. Washington should open an embassy in Taiwan to defend it from the totalitarian Chinese regime.
KENT WANG
Advisory Commissioner, Overseas Community Affairs Council
Republic of China (Taiwan) in the United States
Potomac Falls, Virginia
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