Updated: Feb. 17, 3:11 p.m.
TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The US State Department revised the language published on its website describing the US-Taiwan relationship, removing the words “we do not support Taiwan independence.”
The change to the language was reportedly discovered on Feb. 13. When asked about the revised language and if it indicates Washington is no longer opposed to Taiwan’s independence, a spokesperson for the State Department denied the suggestion, reported UDN.
The spokesperson said that the US maintains its long-standing policy towards Taiwan. The US upholds its commitment to Taiwan, guided by the Taiwan Relations Act, the Three Communiques, the Six Assurances, and the one China policy, per the US State Department.
On Sunday, Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) made a statement welcoming the changes, stating that it reflects the reality of the friendly relations between Taiwan and the US. Lin thanked the Trump administration for its close attention to Taiwan affairs, and said that Taiwan will continue to strengthen its self-defense capabilities, reported CNA.
Previously, the language on the website describing Taiwan's status was also amended during the Biden administration. In May 2022, the State Department deleted portions that declared “Taiwan is a part of China,” and “The United States does not support Taiwan independence.”
However, less than a month after these initial changes, the description of US-Taiwan relations was updated again. This version of the website, referred to as the “Blinken version,” included “we do not support Taiwan independence,” and remained unchanged until this month.
The two changes to the statement in 2022 led to speculation that complaints from Beijing may have influenced the State Department’s decision to re-introduce the sentence in opposition to Taiwan’s independence.
In January, a current U.S. official reportedly told the Central News Agency that any official statement related to Taiwan or China would only be made after being carefully evaluated.
Other additions to the current “Rubio version” include the sentence that declares the US expects “cross-Strait differences to be resolved by peaceful means.” The sentence has been expanded to include “free from coercion, in a manner acceptable to people on both sides of the Strait.”
The newer version also includes some slight changes to the last sentence of the paragraph on the US obligation to provide defense articles and services.
In the Blinken version, the last sentence states that the US “makes available defense articles and services as necessary to enable Taiwan to maintain a sufficient self-defense capability – and maintains our capacity to resist any resort to force or other forms of coercion that would jeopardize the security, or the social or economic system, of Taiwan.”
The new version reads “…and maintains the capacity to resist any resort to force or other forms of coercion that would jeopardize the security, or the social or economic system, of the people of Taiwan.”
The updated “Rubio version” of the statement, shown below, can be viewed on the State Department’s website. On Monday, the website for the American Institute in Taiwan was updated to display the newest version of the statement on US-Taiwan relations.
