US, Taiwan planning economic talks despite China warnings

Two senior Taiwanese government officials on Friday told CNN that Taiwan and the U.S. are planning talks on trade and the economy despite warnings from China.

The officials said that the countries could begin talks “in a few weeks,” with the goal of creating more significant trade and economic cooperation between the two.

The meetings will “explore concrete ways to deepen the US-Taiwan trade and investment relationship,” according to the CNN report.

The report follows a warning from Beijing on Wednesday, when a Chinese military spokesperson announced that the country conducted “combat readiness patrols and actual combat exercises” around Taiwan.

“This is a solemn warning to the recent US-Taiwan collusion activities. It is hypocritical and futile for the US to say one thing and do another on the Taiwan issue, and frequently encourage the ‘Taiwan independence’ forces,” Col. Shi Yi, of the Eastern Theatre Command of the People’s Liberation Army, said.

Days before Shi’s announcement, President Biden contributed to U.S.-China tensions when he affirmed that the U.S. would defend Taiwan militarily if China invaded the island, saying, “That’s the commitment we made.”

“Taiwan is part of China,” Shi insisted in the statement Wednesday. “The theater troops are determined and capable of thwarting any external forces’ interference and separatist attempts to ‘Taiwan independence’, and resolutely safeguard national sovereignty and security and regional peace and stability.”

A senior Taiwanese official also informed CNN that the country plans to send a delegation to the SelectUSA Summit in June, a meeting to promote foreign investment in the U.S. arranged by the Commerce Department’s International Trade Administration.

The U.S. and Taiwan are especially interested in cooperation in sectors related to supply chain resilience and sustainable development.