It was Sunday when the “60 Minutes” interview of Joe Biden by Scott Pelley aired. My friend, Bob Hoge, did an article on the news item that was released in the press pack. In the interview, Joe Biden advises Russian autocrat Vladimir Putin about using chemical or nuclear weapons for tactical purposes to prevent his devastating victory in Ukraine. The actual news that we heard this evening came after the discussion. The entire interview is available below if you're interested in watching it.
“What should Chinese President Xi know about your commitment to Taiwan?” Pelley asked the president.
“We agree with what we signed onto a long time ago,” the President stated. “And that's the case with China policy and Taiwan is able to make their own decisions regarding their autonomy. We're not changing the policy, and we're not encouraging them to be independent. We're not telling them that they have the right to make that decision.”
“But would U.S. forces defend the island?” Pelley asked.
“Yes, if in fact there was an unprecedented attack,” Biden said. Biden said.
“So unlike Ukraine, to be clear, sir,” Pelley stated, “U.S. forces, U.S. men and women would protect Taiwan in the case of a Chinese incursion?”
“Yes,” the president stated.
It's not the only time Biden has stated that the US will protect Taiwan; for example, in his May 23rd 2022 declaration. As far as I'm able to tell, this is the first time a US president has committed US military personnel to protect Taiwan.
Why is this important?
Our policy towards Taiwan is based upon “strategic ambiguity.” The notion is that we don't back Taiwanese independence, however we will offer the Taiwanese weapons. China can continue to spread its fable that Taiwan is an unruly province. This is to impose some kind of pressure on Taiwan however there has been no threat that an invasion could result in US assistance of some sort.
Personally, I believe that we made a typical big-brain, Kissinger-like error when we granted diplomatic recognition to Chicoms and lowered our diplomatic relations with Taiwan based on the belief that we could make China a potential counterweight to the USSR. I'm of the opinion that the history of “strategic ambiguity” is a filthy sludge of dead people or women, as well as children caused by politicians who weren't completely sure of which sides “red lines” were.
The most you could say of Joe Biden is that on the right day, he's a fool. The only problem is that he was sliding into dementia. No one outside his group of care providers knows who's in charge of US policy, and definitely and certainly not Vladimir Putin or Xi Jinping. It's highly unlikely that Joe Biden even comprehends what he is saying since at least twice today, along with his speech on May 23rd, he's declared that US policy demands that we defend Taiwan. That's not the case.
It is true that the White House assured “60 Minutes” that US policy was not changing, however it's hard to imagine Hunter Biden's business associates taking the statement in a way similar to how they would view it.
