Taiwan to appoint military representative in Guam Island base amid Chinese threats

In the wake of China's military threats, Taiwan announced on Monday that a military attaché will be posted shortly in the Guam Island of the United States territory in Micronesia, in the Western Pacific. According to Taiwan News, at a parliamentary discussion, Taiwanese Legislator Wang Ting yu inquired about the status of establishing a military liaison group in Guam, considering that the US territory is a strategically significant area. Further, Defense Minister Chiu Kuo-cheng responded to Wang by saying that processes are in the works and emphasising the need of establishing such an office. 

The Defence Minister also stated that he would even look for any obstacles to establishing the office and resolve them one at the moment. According to the Liberty Times, he said that comparable offices have already opened in Washington, DC, Los Angeles, and Hawaii. Guam Island housed two US military sites 1,800 miles from China, the closest of any on American territory, the New York Post reported. 

'Communication connections with the US Indo-Pacific Command are still open'

Defense Minister Chiu Kuo-cheng also stated that communication connections with the US Indo-Pacific Command are still open. However, during the same discussion, Foreign Minister Joseph Wu stated that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs does not respond to queries about this or other diplomatic problems being addressed with the US or other nations, as per Taiwan News. 

Furthermore, in other recent incidents, the US has announced plans to renovate military stations in Australia and on the western Pacific Island of Guam in order to confront Chinese threats. The Department of Defense's worldwide posture review has prompted the recent move. The review is confidential, according to CNN, but a senior US defence official offered some specifics about the review's conclusions. 

This comes as tensions between the United States and China have risen, notably over the subject of Taiwan, with senior Pentagon officials voicing concern over China's military modernization plans, according to CNN. Meanwhile, the Xi Jinping government has been irked by the Biden administration's invitation to Taiwan for the "Summit for Democracy” where China was excluded.

On Wednesday, the US was threatened for offering "a platform" to the "Taiwan independence" forces, as well as reinforcing and emboldening them. During a press conference, Zhao Lijialn, spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry stated, “There is but one China in the world, the government of the People's Republic of China is the sole legal government representing the whole of China, Taiwan is an inalienable part of China's territory,” as per media reports. The Chinese official reminded the US, noting that in international law, Taiwan has no other identity than that of a component of China. 

Image: AP