President of Taiwan says she has “faith” that the US will defend the island in case of an attack by China

The president of Taiwan said to have “faith” in that USA will defend the island against China, in an interview broadcast Wednesday by CNN.

“I have faith” that US forces will help defend Taiwan, he said. Tsai Ing-wen, amid mounting tensions with Beijing over the island’s future.

“We have a wide range of cooperation with the United States with the goal of increasing our defensive capabilities,” he said.

Interviewed last week about the possibility of a US military intervention in defense of Taiwan in the event of an attack by China, the president Joe Biden He responded affirmatively: “Yes, we are committed to it,” he declared.

His statement appears to contradict the long-standing US policy of “strategic ambiguity,” by virtue of which Washington helps Taiwan to build and strengthen its defense, but without explicitly promising to support it in case of attack.

China regards the island of 23 million people, which it does not control, as one of its provinces that it hopes to reunify with the rest of the country, and Biden’s remarks were poorly received by Beijing.

The US government later assured that its policy towards Taiwan has not changed.