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By Micah McCartney
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China's Foreign Ministry has responded to U.S. President Donald Trump's statement that he'd be "very unhappy" if Beijing attacked Taiwan.
"Taiwan is an inalienable part of China's territory. How to resolve the Taiwan question is a matter for the Chinese ourselves," ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told reporters at a Friday news conference. "This is China's internal affair that brooks no external interference."
Newsweek contacted the U.S. State Department by email for comment outside regular office hours.
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Why It Matters
Taiwan's government, officially the Republic of China, fled the Chinese mainland after its defeat by communist forces in 1949 and functions as a sovereign state with its own elected government, military and diplomatic relations.
Chinese President Xi Jinping maintains that unification is "unstoppable" and has in recent years dramatically stepped up military activities in the area to pressure Taipei's leadership. U.S. officials have warned that Xi may be planning to move against Taiwan, a linchpin of tech supply chains and part of the so-called first island chain, before the end of the decade.
What To Know
During a Wednesday interview with The New York Times, Trump dismissed criticism that the U.S.'s deadly January 3 strike in Venezuela and abduction of President Nicolás Maduro could set a precedent for China to attack Taiwan.
"You didn't have people pouring into China. You didn't have drugs pouring into China. You didn't have all of the bad things that we've had. You didn't have the jails of Taiwan opened up and the people pouring into China," he said, repeating unproven claims that Maduro's government was behind a conspiracy to inundate the U.S. with narcotics and criminals.
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When a Times reporter observed that Xi considered Taiwan a separate threat to China's sovereignty, Trump responded, "That's up to him, what he's going to be doing." He added: "But, you know, I've expressed to him that I would be very unhappy if he did that, and I don't think he'll do that. I hope he doesn't.”
Trump then repeated his statement that Xi had reassured him he would not confront Taiwan during the U.S. president's second term, which ends in January 2029, a claim that has not been confirmed by Beijing.
"He may do it after we have a different president," Trump said, "but I don't think he's going to do it with me as president."
What People Are Saying
Lai Ching-te, the president of Taiwan, said in a December 30 statement responding to the latest round of Chinese military drills: "China's military provocations along the First Island Chain severely disrupt global maritime trade, air traffic & regional peace. Taiwan continues to act responsibly, neither escalating tensions nor yielding to threats—we will steadfastly defend our freedom against coercion."
The German Marshall Fund, a Washington, D.C. think tank, wrote in a recent analysis: "Xi has tied his legitimacy to putting the [People's Republic of China] on an irreversible path toward the 'China Dream' of national rejuvenation by 2049 and unifying Taiwan with the motherland is deemed essential to that goal.
"Yet a military conflict over Taiwan would risk massive economic disruption, catastrophic military losses, significant social unrest, and devastating sanctions, all of which could turn his dream into a nightmare and undermine his political authority. Xi's calculus must therefore weigh the perceived benefits of using force to achieve unification against the potential costs."
What Happens Next
Taiwan is expected to feature prominently during Trump's planned April visit to Beijing for his second round of face-to-face talks with Xi in his current term.
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