Pompeo Argues Taiwan Is Not Part of China, as Pentagon Restates Support for U.S. One-China Policy

Nov. 13, 2020 (EIRNS)—Secretary of State Mike Pompeo continues to undermine U.S. China policy. On Nov. 12, he granted another of his many interviews to radio host Hugh Hewitt, during which he proclaimed that Taiwan has not been a part of China for a long time. More than that, Pompeo declared that Taiwan is a “model” for democracy that Beijing ought to respect. He further claimed that that was the policy of the Reagan Administration in the 1980s.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin responded by confirming that Taiwan is an inalienable part of China and that Pompeo was further damaging Sino-U.S. ties. “We solemnly tell Pompeo and his ilk, that any behavior that undermines China’s core interests and interferes with China’s domestic affairs will be met with a resolute counterattack by China,” he said, without elaborating.

The Pentagon, meanwhile, also contradicted Pompeo on the One China policy, though not a direct response to the Hewitt broadcast. The Pentagon shot down reports from Taiwan earlier this week that U.S. Marine special forces were in Taiwan on a training mission. “The reports about U.S. Marines on Taiwan are inaccurate,” Pentagon spokesman John Supple told Marine Corps Times in a Nov. 10 email. “The United States remains committed to our One-China Policy based on the three Joint Communiqués, Taiwan Relations Act, and Six Assurances.”