U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo participated in the “Quad meeting” jointly held by the United States, Japan, Australia and India on Oct. 6, calling for regional cooperation against the Chinese regime’s aggression in the Indo-Pacific.
Other participants included Japanese Foreign Minister Motegi Toshimitsu, Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne, and Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar.
In an exclusive interview with Japanese media Nikkei, Pompeo expressed that if a war breaks out in the Taiwan Strait, the United States will not take an approach of appeasement or sit by in the event the Chinese regime invades the region.
Pompeo said that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)’s actions in the Indo-Pacific region amount to “bullying.”
“This is the Chinese using coercive power. This isn’t how great nations operate. So, our mission is to reduce that.”
When the Nikkei reporter asked Pompeo if the United States military is ready to defend Taiwan in the event the Chinese regime unilaterally attacks the self-ruled island, he answered: “We are doing everything we can to reduce the tension there.”
“These are the kind of things one does. Whether it’s Taiwan or the challenge presented to Japan, the United States will be a good partner for security in every dimension,” Pompeo said.
“This is the mission of the U.S. Trump administration in the world. We look to bring peace, not conflict. The shame of it is the Chinese Communist Party,” he added.
Pompeo also emphasized: “We’ve only come to recognize that appeasement’s not the answer. … If one bends the knee each time the Chinese Communist Party takes action around the world, one will find themselves having to bend the knee with great frequency. So, we have pushed back in a serious way with my diplomatic counterparts.”
During an interview with Japanese media NHK, Pompeo expressed that the world has always been under threat from the CCP, and that it is time the United States and its allies take serious steps to address challenges posed by China.
The NHK reporter mentioned the issue of Taiwan, warning that the CCP’s suppression of Hong Kong may be staged in Taiwan.
Then the reporter asked Pompeo what he thought of the ongoing tension between China and the United States over the Taiwan issue. Pompeo replied, “And so we watch what’s taking place in Taiwan. It’s not about the United States versus China. This is about freedom or tyranny. This is about will the world be ruled by those who use coercive power, they use their military to bully, or will we operate in a system that is rule-based and understands that there’s room for democracies and freedom? That’s the challenge.”
As the CCP keeps flying warplanes near Taiwan to flex its muscles, bilateral ties between the United States and Taiwan increasingly strengthened in recent months. One of the milestones is the visit by U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar on Aug. 9, which marked the highest-level visit by an American cabinet official since 1979—the year the United States severed official diplomatic ties with Taiwan in recognition of Beijing.
