BEIJING — China’s foreign minister said Wednesday that Taiwan’s independence poses the biggest threat to regional stability, but vowed not to take new measures that could bring Beijing into conflict with the United States or other countries amid rising tensions.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi spoke during a visit to Beijing by U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan. The White House said the two sides welcomed efforts to “schedule a leadership discussion in the coming weeks.”
Taiwan, a self-governing island democracy that seceded from authoritarian communist China in 1949, has rejected Beijing’s demands to join the mainland by peace or force.
The US should conform to China’s interpretations regarding China and “support the peaceful reunification of China,” Wang said, as quoted by the official Xinhua news agency.
The White House statement said Sullivan “stressed the importance of maintaining peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.”
The US is trying to rebalance ties with China after disputes arose over trade and Beijing’s financial support for Russia’s defense industry during its large-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Despite their political differences, China and the US maintain close economic ties and many Chinese have moved to the US for work as Beijing’s state-oriented economy struggles.
The US military has opposed China’s claim to virtually the entire South China Sea and said this week it is open to talks on escorting Philippine ships in the disputed sea amidst an increase in hostilities between Beijing and Manila on this issue.
The White House said Sullivan and Wang “noted the importance of regular, ongoing communications between service members and planned to hold a telephone conversation with the theater commander in the near future.”
China has rapidly expanded its military and become increasingly assertive in pursuing its territorial claims in the South China Sea.
The Philippines has called for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to do more. The 10-nation Southeast Asian bloc includes the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei, which have claims in the South China Sea that overlap with each other and with China and Taiwan.