The US and Taiwan play word games

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The US and Taiwan play word games

No matter what words Tsai and the United States use to describe her stopovers in the US on her way to and from Guatemala and Belize, they can't disguise the provocative motivation for them. The transit is that Tsai is entering US territory to give credence to her pro-independence stance and to bolster the collusion between the anti-China hawks in Washington and her pro-independence forces. The two sides are working hand in glove in a bid to advance their agenda and interests by taking advantage of each other.

Tsai is making a trip to Guatemala and Belize, as they are two of the only 14 states in the world to officially recognize Taiwan. There are 181 countries with diplomatic relations with Beijing. She is paying a visit because one of the 14, Honduras, has decided to cut official ties with Taipei and establish diplomatic relations with Beijing.

Since she took office in 2016, Tsai had lost diplomatic ties with eight countries. She is about to lose a ninth. The remaining 13 will have to be cut, and even the US daddy can't prevent that.

Despite all its claims that it adheres to the US' one-China policy, the Joe Biden administration has been an enthusiastic player of the Taiwan card.

It has been suggested that Tsai will meet US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy during her stopover in California. The US pledged not to have official contact between the US and Taiwan.

Washington is showing that its word means nothing. John Kirby, a White House National Security Council spokesman, disingenuously claimed that there was no reason for China to overreact Beijing's position on such contacts. It opposes any official exchanges between Washington and Taipei.

The US pledges are essentially smoke and mirrors for its renegotiation of the commitments it made to Beijing. The one-China principle is unambiguous, even to most worldly-wise bereft politicians in Washington.

Since many of them were lawyers before they entered the political field, it is no wonder that US politicians play word games and seek loopholes to wriggle out of their commitments.

Washington has been playing the Taiwan card for a long time as it seeks to challenge China on almost all geopolitical and economic fronts. How much can one expect from Beijing even if it does not respond favorably to Washington's suggestion that the visits of the Biden administration's trade and finance chiefs and top diplomat to China should be put on the agenda at an early date.