The Chinese regime should cease its “provocative” military maneuvers near Taiwan, which is “dangerous” and risks miscalculation, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Oct. 6.
“The actions we’ve seen by China are provocative and potentially destabilizing,” Blinken told Bloomberg Television in Paris. “What I hope is that these actions will cease because there is always the possibility of miscalculation, of miscommunication, and that’s dangerous,” he said.
Beijing has ramped up military aggression toward the self-ruled island, over which it has for decades sought to claim sovereignty.
Since Oct. 1, an anniversary marking the founding of the Chinese communist regime, Chinese warplanes have flown over the island’s air defense zone for five days straight, which on Monday with a record 56 aircraft sent in a single day. The campaign saw 150 military flights dispatched by Beijing.
“Provocative actions go in exactly the wrong direction. And it’s very important that no one take any unilateral actions that change the status quo by force,” said Blinken.
“We really need to see China cease some of the actions that it’s taken because they are potentially a source of instability, not stability,” he added.
Blinken said in a press conference in Paris the same day that the United States will “continue to deepen our ties with a democratic Taiwan.”
By Eva Fu
