TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) warned of growing Chinese aggression in the Indo-Pacific as the U.S. presidential election approaches.

Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Tien Chung-kwang (田中光) delivered a report to the Foreign and National Defense Committee of the Legislative Yuan on Thursday (March 28) about China and North Korea’s growing interests in the Indo-Pacific and U.S. influence in the region, per CNA.

Tien said there are still seven months until the U.S. election, making the overall geopolitical situation hard to assess. “However, MOFA and relevant overseas missions will continue to maintain balanced interactions with all parties and ensure full communication to guard against the manipulation of cross-strait issues as political issues,” the deputy minister added.

“MOFA will also closely coordinate with the U.S. to respond to whether China and North Korea are seeking to advance their interests in the Indo-Pacific region as the U.S. election draws near,” Tien said.

Tien also said the Trump administration proposed its Free and Open Indo-Pacific policy in 2017, which led to a rise in U.S.-China competition, per Liberty Times. The Biden administration has continued to expand this strategy by establishing closer security partnerships with Indo-Pacific allies and assisting Taiwan’s self-defense capabilities, he added.

Tien said, “The strategic policy of the U.S. to expand its investment in the Indo-Pacific region and strengthen competition with China is a consensus between the Democratic and Republican parties.” “Regardless of who ultimately wins the election, it is expected that the U.S. will continue to prioritize the Indo-Pacific region and Taiwan and deepen its strategy according to its Free and Open Indo-Pacific policy,” he said.