Why Is The U.S. Provoking China In 'The Most Dangerous Place On Earth'?

Why is the US provoking China in 'the most dangerous place on earth'

Sergey Mihailicenko

Today, East Asia is the scene of a sharp confrontation between two major nuclear powers – the United States and China. The situation is worsening as the Americans execute plans to contain Beijing. The key point of contention fueling these tensions is the Taiwan Strait. In recent years, Washington has increased its supply of weapons and military equipment to the island, while assisting in revamping the armed forces of Taiwan and strongly encouraging the local government’s desire for independence.

Taiwan holds extremely important geopolitical significance for the US and China, representing part of the ‘first island chain’ stretching from the Aleutian Islands in the north through Japan and the Philippines, to the Greater Sunda Islands in the south. It is this ‘Pacific frontier’ that both Washington and Beijing have defined as their main line of defense. The politicians in power on Formosa (which means ‘beautiful’ in Portuguese and is a name that prevailed in Western cartography until the 20th century) in recent years have consistently pursued a policy of strengthening ties with the US, which is fully consistent with Washington’s anti-Chinese rhetoric.

The leadership of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) has repeatedly made it clear that actions violating the One-China policy are unacceptable. This also goes for the provisions of the three joint US-Chinese communiques of 1972-1982, which form the basis of the countries’ bilateral relations.  

The rhetoric coming from the Chinese government has become increasingly belligerent recently, as “the reunification of Taiwan with the motherland” is a fundamental national security interest for Beijing that warrants military force to defend if necessary.

Meanwhile, thanks to the vague wording of the 1979 Taiwan Relations Act, the US government prefers to avoid answering questions regarding the existence of concrete obligations to assist the island. At the same time, there is no real readiness at different levels of the American political system and in the expert community to move from economic and geopolitical confrontation with China to open conflict.

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