China is gearing up to strike Taiwan and could hit the self-governed territory in just a few months as Beijing and the West lock horns, an analyst has told Daily Express US.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with Chinese President Xi Jinping today in a desperate bid to ease tensions in the Taiwan Strait.
Beijing has long threatened to invade the island nation in the Indo-Pacific, ramping up military exercises in its waters in recent months.
While President Xi reportedly said today that China and the US should “be partners, not rivals”, there may soon be no hope of salvaging the relationship.
That’s according to Brandon Weichert, a National Security Analyst from The National Interest, who says China is dead set on its goal of retaking Taiwan.
He said: “China will not listen [to the US], especially because I remain convinced that Beijing is readying to strike Taiwan soon–possibly as early as this fall.
“They don’t care what the Americans say anymore.”
According to Mr Weichert, China refuses to listen as it is obsessed with controlling the region.
He said: “China under Xi Jinping is deeply committed to reshaping the world system away from the maritime democracies of the US-led Western order and toward the continental autocracies of the China-led Eurasian order.”
But Beijing Xi appeared to take a friendly tone as he sat down with Blinken amid the surging tensions.
The Chinese President reportedly called for mutual respect, peaceful coexistence, and win-win cooperation, describing these as the “three major principles” for US-China relations.
He reportedly said: “[The two countries] should make achievements for each other, not do harm to each other.”
Xi added that “China would like to see a confident, open and prosperous United States.”
“We hope that the United States will view China’s development in a positive light.”
But Beijing has not responded well US’ stance on Taiwan, calling the issue ”the first insurmountable red line” in relations between the two powers.
It has previously called on the US to stop sending arms sales to the island and has slammed Washington’s “endless measures” to block technology exports to China.
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