Will President Biden’s Strategic Clarity Backfire?

President Biden said the United States will militarily defend Taiwan from Chinese aggression

Photo by Adrien Robert on Unsplash

At a recent summit with leaders from Japan, India, and Australia, President Joe Biden told a reporter the United States would militarily defend Taiwan if China invaded the island. The reporter sought an explanation since the United States refused to counter Russia’s invasion of Ukraine with conventional forces.

Biden reminded the reporter the United States made a commitment to Taiwan.

International media correspondents wondered if Biden ended decades of U.S. strategic ambiguity, which is a policy designed to keep China uncertain of America’s military commitment to Taiwan’s defense. While other media correspondents wondered if Biden misspoke, leaving his handlers to clarify America’s actual position on Taiwan.

Is the United States committed to Taiwan’s defense, or is strategic ambiguity the official policy?

In 1950 U.S. Secretary of State Dean Acheson told the press South Korea and Taiwan were outside of the defense perimeter of the United States. North Korea immediately invaded South Korea and China accelerated its plans to invade Taiwan.