China accuses U.S. of 'serious regression' in its Taiwan position after change to State Dept. website

China accused the United States of a “serious regression” in its position on Taiwan, after the State Department updated the Taiwan section of its website.

HONG KONG — China accused the United States on Monday of a “serious regression” in its position on Taiwan, after the State Department updated the Taiwan section of its website to remove a reference to the independence of the Beijing-claimed island.

The State Department fact sheet on U.S.-Taiwan relations continues to state Washington’s opposition to any unilateral changes to the status quo from either China or Taiwan, a self-ruling democracy that rejects Beijing’s sovereignty claims. But the phrase “we do not support Taiwan independence” appears to have been removed on Thursday in what the State Department says was a routine update.

The change was cheered by Taiwan, while China said it “sends a wrong signal to the Taiwan independence forces” and urged the U.S. to “immediately correct this mistake.”

The U.S. should “stop using Taiwan to control China” and “stop condoning and supporting Taiwan independence,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said at a regular briefing in Beijing on Monday. “This will help avoid further serious damage to China-U.S. relations and peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.”

The same phrase about not supporting Taiwan independence was removed from the State Department fact sheet in 2022 during the Biden administration before being restored a few weeks later.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/china-taiwan-independence-us-state-department-website-rcna192435

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