Senior US official reiterates support for peace, stability across Taiwan Strait

TAIPEI: US Deputy Secretary of State, Kurt Campbell called German Foreign Office State Secretary Thomas Bagger to reiterate his support for Ukraine and the importance of maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, Taiwan News reported, citing a press release.

US Department of State Spokesperson Matthew Miller said the discussion on Thursday between the pair also included the prevention of an expansion of conflicts in the Middle East, Central News Agency reported.

Campbell also met with South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Dui-yeol on Friday and reiterated the US' commitment to its alliance with South Korea, for "peace and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific." The deputy secretary has a long career of working on Pacific region politics and has been a long-time supporter of Taiwan.

In 2000, he visited Taiwan when Chen Shui-bian was president, where he was warmly welcomed, according to Taiwan News. In 2013, he again visited Taiwan, which was under the Ma Ying-jeou administration. Ma thanked Campbell for deepening relations between Taiwan and the US and bestowed the Order of Brilliant Star with Special Grand Cordon.

Campbell was sworn in as the new deputy secretary on February 12 of this year. His previous posts include deputy assistant to the president and coordinator for Indo-Pacific affairs on the National Security Council. Meanwhile, Taiwan's Ministry of National Defence (MND) detected nine Chinese military aircraft and eight naval vessels around Taiwan.

Four out of nine People's Liberation Army (PLA) aircraft crossed the Taiwan Strait median line and entered the southwest corner of Taiwan's air defence identification zone (ADIZ). Taiwan's MND said it monitored the situation and responded by deploying appropriate resources and forces.

So far in February, Taiwan has detected over 250 Chinese military aircraft and over 150 Chinese naval ships 150 times, according to a Taiwan News report. Since September 2020, China has increased its use of 'grey zone tactics' by incrementally increasing the number of military aircraft and naval ships operating around Taiwan, according to Taiwan News.

Grey zone tactics are defined as "an effort or series of efforts beyond steady-state deterrence and assurance that attempts to achieve one's security objectives without resort to direct and sizable use of force."