Taiwan defense minister says island must not rely on others for protection

The defense minister of Taiwan on Thursday said that the island cannot rely on others for protection and must depend on itself as military tensions between China and Taiwan have grown in recent weeks, the Associated Press reported.

Speaking to journalists on Thursday, Taiwan’s Defense minister Chiu Kuo-cheng said, “The country must rely on itself, and if any friends or other groups can help us, then it’s like I said before, we’re happy to have it, but we cannot completely depend on it,” according to the news outlet.

Those comments come as Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen claimed in a recent interview that nations like the United States would come to the aid of Taiwan if China launched an attack against the island. 

In an interview with CNN published on Thursday, Ing-wen said that “given the long-term relationship we have with the US,” she claimed countries like the United States would assist Taiwan.

“Taiwan is not alone because we are a democracy, we respect freedom and we are peace lovers. And we share values with most of the countries in the region and geographically we are of strategic importance,”  Ing-wen told the network, according to CNN. 

The presence of American troops on the island was also confirmed by Ing-wen during the CNN interview, which China’s ministry of foreign affairs strongly rebuked, the AP noted.

The comments come as President Biden affirmed during a CNN town hall earlier this month that the U.S. would defend Taiwan in the event that China launched an attack.

“Yes, we have a commitment to do that,” Biden said.

However, the White House quickly clarified that the U.S. had not changed its policy with regard to Taiwan amid the tensions with China.

“He wasn’t announcing a change in policy nor have we changed our policy,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said. “We are guided by the Taiwan Relations Act.”