China’s foreign minister expressed hope for “more stable relations” with the USA in Washington

Friday, October 27th, 3:26 a.m.: Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi expressed hope in Washington for “more stable relations with the US after months of turmoil.” “We want to expand cooperation for the benefit of both sides to stabilize US-China relations and return them to the path of healthy, stable and sustainable development,” Wang said at the start of his three-day visit to the US capital on Thursday (local time) before a meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

There will always be disagreements, Wang admitted. China then wants to “react calmly,” he assured. Blinken, for his part, said he was looking forward to “constructive discussions” with his guest, and a dinner together was also planned.

On Friday, Wang will speak with National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan at the White House. A meeting with US President Joe Biden has not yet been announced, but is expected after Chinese President Xi Jinping also received Blinken in Beijing.

Secrets revealed to China: 20 years in prison for Taiwanese military officers

Wednesday, October 25th, 1:03 p.m.: A court in Taiwan has sentenced several military personnel to prison terms of up to 20.5 years for passing secrets to China. The judges in Kaohsiung found that the military, some still active and some retired, violated several national security laws, Taiwan’s state-run news agency CNA reported on Wednesday. Accordingly, an Air Force colonel and six officers had to appear in court. The court declared one not guilty.

According to CNA, investigators concluded that the colonel moved to China in 2013 during his retirement to set up a business there. The Chinese Communist Party approached him there and exploited his connections with the Taiwanese military to recruit informants there. Although Taiwan has had an independent democratic government for decades, China considers the island nation to be part of its territory. Beijing was already threatening an invasion. China regularly demonstrates its military might in the strait between the two states.

According to reports, the officer eventually received money through shell companies in disguise after six Navy and Air Force officers were recruited. The party offered the officer additional money for secret military information from its own hands, CNA reported. The officer faces 20 years in prison. The authorities confiscated the equivalent of around 488,000 euros in income from his actions. Two other defendants have to go to prison for 20.5 and 19.5 years respectively.

China’s Foreign Minister Wang is traveling to Washington this week for talks

Tuesday, October 24th, 12:33 a.m.: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will host his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi for talks in Washington this week. Wang will be in the US capital from Thursday to Saturday, senior US officials announced on Monday. The visit could hint at a possible visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping to the United States later this year.

Wang is the highest-ranking Chinese visitor to Washington in nearly five years. There have been numerous contacts between the USA and China in the past few months. The two rival major powers sought to manage tensions “in a responsible manner,” a U.S. official said.

Details of Wang’s visit program were not initially given. It was also initially unclear whether Wang Yi would be received by US President Joe Biden. US Secretary of State Blinken was received by the Chinese head of state during his visit to Beijing in June.

In any case, Wang’s visit could serve to prepare President Xi’s trip to the United States, which could take place in San Francisco in mid-November on the occasion of the next Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit.

The talks between US Secretary of State Blinken and Wang are likely to focus on the recent rapprochement between China and Russia, the war in Ukraine and, above all, the war between Israel and the radical Islamic Palestinian organization Hamas.

Points of contention between Washington and Beijing include trade restrictions, the Taiwan question and Beijing’s actions in the South China Sea.

Taiwan allows Hamas attack on Israel to be analyzed for its own purposes

Thursday, October 12th, 10:15 a.m.: Because of Hamas’ major attack on Israel, Taiwan has set up a group of experts to draw its own lessons for its relationship with China. The work of the secret services is important because it allows wars to be predicted and prevented, said Defense Minister Chiu Kuo-cheng in Taipei on Thursday. According to him, Taiwan is prepared for a conflict. The democratic island state with more than 23 million inhabitants and its army wanted to avoid war with rival China.

Taiwan is only separated from the People’s Republic by a strait, the Taiwan Strait. The great power China, ruled by the Communist Party, considers Taiwan part of its territory and has already threatened to invade. China regularly demonstrates its military might in the Taiwan Strait.

Also read: Analysis from China-Understander – If the Middle East tilts, there is a threat of Chinese war of aggression against Taiwan

In the event of a conflict, Taiwan is likely to receive support from Western partners such as the USA. The US military also has a regular presence in the Pacific region. On Thursday, a US reconnaissance aircraft flew through the Taiwan Strait, the US Navy said. According to a spokesman, the Chinese military sent a fighter jet to monitor the passage of the US plane.

Taiwan’s president calls for peace in the Taiwan Strait

Tuesday, October 10th, 11:28 a.m.: Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen called for peace in the Taiwan Strait as the only solution for global security on the democratic island state’s National Day. “Maintaining the status quo as the highest common denominator for all sides is the critical key to securing peace,” she said in Taipei on Tuesday. The international community must understand that peace and stability in the strait between Taiwan and the People’s Republic of China is an indispensable part of global security.

On October 10, the people of Taiwan commemorate a 1911 uprising that led to the founding of the Republic of China. Many years later, the republic under interim president Sun Yat-sen lost the civil war against the communists in China and was forced to flee to Taiwan. Taiwan, with its 23 million inhabitants, still bears the official name of the Republic of China today.

The People’s Republic of China, ruled by the Communist Party, considers Taiwan to be part of its territory. The biggest threat to peace and stability in the region is that Tsai’s party “stubbornly adheres to the secessionist stance of Taiwan’s independence,” said China’s foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin in Beijing on Tuesday.

Taiwan has been governed by an independent democratic government for decades. China repeatedly demonstrates its military power in the Taiwan Strait. In September, a record number of military aircraft flew through Taiwan’s air surveillance zone. A war in the region is likely to have far-reaching consequences, for example because the USA has promised support for Taiwan.

“Differences in the Taiwan Strait must be resolved peacefully,” Tsai said. Her government stuck to its promises not to provoke, not to act harshly and not to bow to pressure. The upcoming presidential election in Taiwan in January is also eagerly awaited, in which Tsai from the Democratic Progressive Party will no longer run after two terms in office.

More than 100 Chinese military aircraft registered off Taiwan

Monday, September 18th, 5:07 a.m.: Taiwan registered more than 100 Chinese military aircraft flying around its island in one day. The Ministry of Defense in Taipei announced on Monday that 103 aircraft from the People’s Liberation Army of China and 9 naval ships were recorded within 24 hours by 6:00 a.m. (local time). The Chinese military flies into the area almost daily. This time the number was comparatively high at 103 aircraft. “We call on the authorities in Beijing to take responsibility and immediately stop such unilateral, destructive actions,” Taiwan’s Defense Ministry said.

According to the information, 40 planes flew over the symbolic center line in the Taiwan Strait, the strait between the Republic of Taiwan and the People’s Republic of China. They thereby penetrated the air defense zone in the southeast and southwest of Taiwan.

China, ruled by the Communist Party, sees Taiwan, with its around 24 million inhabitants, as part of its territory. Beijing therefore reacts sensitively when delegations from other countries visit the country or promise support. Most recently, China sanctioned two US defense companies for selling weapons to Taiwan, the Chinese Foreign Ministry announced.

Last weekend, representatives from China and the USA spoke to each other in several rounds in Malta. China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi told National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan that the Taiwan issue was a “red line” that should not be crossed in China-US relations, according to Chinese sources. According to the White House, the US and China want to hold further talks at the “highest level” in the coming months.

Democratic Taiwan has had an independent government since 1949. Beijing has threatened to invade in the past. Most recently, observers also assumed that the Chinese military was holding a major exercise in the Western Pacific, where Taiwan is located. China’s Foreign Ministry did not provide any information and called for provocations that disrupted peace in the Taiwan Strait to be avoided.