July 16, 2023
The 56th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Foreign Ministers’ Meeting and related meetings were held in Jakarta, Indonesia, from July 11 to 14. United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken underlined the importance of maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait at a bilateral meeting with Wang Yi, Director of the Office of the Central Commission for Foreign Affairs of the Chinese Communist Party, and during the US-ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting.
At a press conference on July 14, Secretary Blinken affirmed that the United States, like its allies in the Indo-Pacific, is concerned about China’s increasing assertiveness in the South and East China Seas and the Taiwan Strait. He added that the United States is committed to maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, which is in the interest of all nations, given that 50 percent of global commerce passes through the strait every day and some 70 percent of the world’s semiconductors are manufactured in Taiwan. Secretary Blinken reiterated that the United States continues to oppose unilateral changes to the status quo by either side.
Meanwhile, Japanese Minister for Foreign Affairs Yoshimasa Hayashi and Republic of Korea (ROK) Minister of Foreign Affairs Park Jin in their meetings with Wang also conveyed concern over the situation across the Taiwan Strait and emphasized the importance of preserving cross-strait peace and stability. The concern expressed by the US state secretary and the Japanese and ROK foreign ministers shows that there is general consensus on peace across the Taiwan Strait among like-minded Indo-Pacific countries. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) of the Republic of China (Taiwan) sincerely welcomes and appreciates their unanimous stance.
Occupying a pivotal position on the first island chain in East Asia and the West Pacific, Taiwan plays an indispensable and crucial role in Indo-Pacific security and prosperity. Taiwan will continue to cooperate closely with the United States, Japan, the ROK, and other like-minded partners to safeguard shared democratic values and ensure peace, stability, and prosperity across the Taiwan Strait and in the region.