US Deputy Secretary of State Meets with Taiwan Representative in the US to "Strengthen Bilateral Relations"

Daniel Kritenbrink, U.S. Department of State Assistant Secretary for East Asian and Pacific Affairs (Photo by VOA)

[Asia Economy Reporter Yujin Cho] Daniel Kritenbrink, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, known as a China expert, met with the Taipei Representative to the U.S. and pledged to strengthen the relationship between the United States and Taiwan.

According to major foreign media on the 15th (local time), Assistant Secretary Kritenbrink met with Hsiao Bi-khim, Representative of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the U.S., in Washington D.C. on the 12th.

On the following day, Kritenbrink wrote on his Twitter, "The United States' commitment to Taiwan remains steadfast," adding, "We look forward to an even stronger bilateral relationship."

Earlier, Kritenbrink stated that he is responsible for deepening a stronger relationship with Taiwan across various fields, saying, "We are closely monitoring the increasing situations where Taiwan faces invasion, unrest, and intimidation, and I will continue to express my determination to uphold the Taiwan Relations Act."

Taiwanese media reported that Hsiao Bi-khim visited the U.S. Department of State in July last year and February this year, meeting with then Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs David Stilwell and Acting Assistant Secretary Sung Kim.

This demonstrates the U.S.'s willingness to support Taiwan and strengthen ties amid the new Cold War between the U.S. and China.

Kritenbrink served as Senior Director for Asia at the White House National Security Council (NSC) during the Barack Obama administration and was a senior advisor on North Korea at the State Department.

Fluent in Chinese, he has extensive diplomatic experience in Asia, having served as Minister Counselor and Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in China.

Meanwhile, Chiu Kuo-cheng, Taiwan's Minister of National Defense, stated at the Legislative Yuan's Foreign and National Defense Committee the day before that "there must be justification for military deployment," and the Republic of China will never "initiate war."

However, he hinted at responding to threats from the Chinese military, saying, "Our fighter jets are not non-functional plastic models" if China takes military action.

On the other hand, Chiu Tai-san, Chairman of Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council, the agency responsible for China affairs, criticized at a lecture for the Taiwan Listed Companies Association the day before that the deployment of a total of 149 Chinese military aircraft in Taiwan's Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) from the 1st to the 4th was already a state of "quasi-war."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.