The Biden administration tries to reassure allies in Asia while responding to Beijing measuredly

A week after U.S. President Joe Biden took office, the Pentagon reiterated its commitment to support Taiwan following Beijing’s stern warning to the island. Experts think the series of statements that Washington has made since Biden came into power shows that his administration is trying to respond to Beijing’s threats towards its allies in the region in a measured way.

Question: The Pentagon came out on Thursday to reiterate their commitment to offer Taiwan the necessary support to build up its defense capability, following the Chinese defense ministry’s stern warning for Taiwan. How do you assess the significance of the statement?

Bonnie Glaser: It should be put into a broader context of U.S. statements made to other countries in the region. There was a strong statement following a phone call between the foreign minister of the Philippines and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken this week.

It was a very clear statement about how the mutual defense treaty covers the Filipino armed forces and the U.S. opposes China’s maritime claims in the South China Sea, as they exceed the maritime zones that China is permitted to claim under international law.

Within one week, the new administration took a very clear stance to reassure the Philippines and to deter China from taking any action. My sense is that the administration wants to be very clear to China right out of the box that we have very strong interests in peace and stability and we are going to uphold our commitments.

The Pentagon’s language on China’s warning to Taiwan is interesting, because they tried to dial down the tension and basically said “we haven’t changed our policies and we are just doing the same things that we have always done.” It shows that the U.S. will help Taiwan with its defense and the U.S. will still abide by the Taiwan Relations Act and the Three Communiques.

I really thought that statement was not trying to ratchet up the pressure and friction, and it is actually trying to lower the rhetoric. Unlike Beijing’s fiery rhetoric, there was nothing that the Pentagon said that was unusual. They were also careful to say when asked if the U.S. would come to Taiwan’s defense. They basically said the U.S. doesn’t engage in hypotheticals and the U.S. will just abide by our commitments, which is always the right answer.

I’d like to think that China is showing its resolve to defend its sovereignty claims and the U.S. is showing its resolve as well. Whether this leads to increased risk of something happening or they both made their points and just try to continue on pursuing their policies and find ways to work together, I think the path forward is quite unclear.

The Obama administration believed in some ways that China saw the U.S. as weak and took advantage of us in 2012. I think some former Obama administration officials learned a very important lesson in 2012, so I think these same people back in office want to make sure that China doesn’t miscalculate and see the U.S. as weak.

There is an increased danger of miscalculation so I really think the Pentagon’s statement was just clear about what the U.S. interests are to prevent miscalculation and any kind of accidents from happening. They hope after both sides demonstrate their resolves, we can find ways to manage the growing strategic competition between the U.S. and China, and they can deter China from continuing to coerce its neighbors.

It is the early days in the Biden administration but I think they are doing the right thing.

DW: There is a clear difference between how the Trump administration decided to respond to fiery comments from Beijing versus how the Biden administration decides to respond to those comments. Do you think the difference might be more beneficial to U.S. interests in Asia in the long run?

Bonnie Glaser: I think the Biden administration is trying to lay down some markers to demonstrate some consistency to show resolve. I think they do want to avoid a situation where they push China into a corner, or they provoke a very forceful response from China.

I think they are trying to be measured. But when China uses military assets to intimidate countries like Taiwan, I think we are going to show a good response. I think one thing that’s still unclear is whether or not the U.S. actions in the area around Taiwan and the South China Sea were planned in advance or not.

They may have nothing to do with the Biden administration. The Indo-Pacific Command may have its deployment schedules so they send their aircraft carriers out there. I think it may be too early to see how the U.S. is going to respond to Chinese coercion. I’m still scratching my head about Beijing’s messaging in sending such a large number of military aircrafts into Taiwan’s ADIZ.

Were they actually trying to operate in ways that they could threaten the carrier battle group that was sailing in the South China Sea? It seems uncertain to me.

Question: Do you think U.S. allies in Asia Pacific can be a bit more assured that the Biden administration is starting to reveal people who will take on key positions that will be in charge of U.S. policies in the region?

Bonnie Glaser: I think the early signs are good. It’s interesting to me that the Trump administration officials who have been expressing during the campaign and after the election some doubts about whether the Biden administration would be tough on China.

Even some Republicans are now saying the Biden administration looks pretty good. There are strong statements on Taiwan, the Philippines and Japan. They haven’t engaged with China and we are doing phone calls with allies and friends. It’s actually looking pretty good and I think there is a deep bench of very seasoned experts in the Biden administration.

This interview was first published in Mandarin on DW’s Chinese website.