Republican presidential candidate and former US President Donald Trump told Bloomberg Businessweek that Taiwan should pay for its defense because it “doesn’t give the US anything in return,” as he put it.
Trump added – in an interview conducted on June 25 and published yesterday, Tuesday – that Washington provides protection to Taiwan in its conflict with China, so it must pay for it.
He stressed that the United States is “no different from insurance companies,” and therefore cannot provide its services for free.
The United States is Taiwan’s most important international backer and arms supplier, but there is no formal defense pact between them similar to what Washington has concluded with South Korea and Japan.
Taiwan’s response
In response to Trump’s remarks, Taiwanese Prime Minister Chu Jung-tai said his country has good relations with Washington despite the lack of formal ties, and that the island is committed to strengthening its defenses.
He stressed that Taiwan has increased its defense budget and demonstrated its responsibility to the international community.
He stressed his country’s readiness to what he called “take more responsibility for defending and ensuring Taiwan’s security,” without clarifying what he meant by that or what could be offered to Washington.
Taiwan’s foreign ministry declined to comment on Trump’s remarks.
US President Joe Biden has previously irked the Chinese government with comments that appeared to suggest the United States would defend Taiwan if it came under attack, contrary to a long-standing US stance of “strategic ambiguity”.
China claims Taiwan as an integral part of its territory, and says it will not hesitate to use force to regain it.
Beijing has intensified its pressure on Taipei in recent days in recent years, and conducted military exercises around the island last May after the inauguration of Lai Ching-te as Taiwan’s president, whom Beijing considers a “dangerous separatist.”
