The US will find ways to work with China without violating Washington's security commitments to Japan and other allies in the Indo-Pacific region, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said last night, quoted by Kyodo, BTA reported.
Rubio's statement was made at a press conference at the US State Department, at a time when tensions between Japan and China have escalated again over Taiwan, and the administration of President Donald Trump is trying to build better relations with Beijing. Despite the difficulties with China on many issues, Rubio said the US must cooperate with the world's second-largest economy, as it will remain a powerful country and an important factor in geopolitics.
Known as a long-time China hawk during his Senate career, Rubio jokingly said he had been "nice" to Chinese officials "in terms of the work we have to do with them."
While noting that the US and China have made progress in improving their relations in recent months, Rubio, who is also Trump's national security adviser, stressed that Japan is a "very close ally of the US" and described the tensions between Beijing and Tokyo as "long-standing" and known to the US administration.
"We can continue our strong and steadfast partnership and alliance with Japan and do so in a way that allows us to find productive ways to cooperate" with China, he said in his first public comments since the conflict between the Asian countries began last month. It began after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi told parliament on November 7 that an attack on Taiwan could pose an "existential threat" for Japan.
The reference to this legal term was interpreted as a hint that such a situation could trigger a response involving Japanese and American forces, within the framework of the right of collective self-defense.
China is angry because it considers Taiwan its territory and does not rule out the use of force to take control of the self-governing island, Kyodo recalled.
Rubio said that both the United States and China are "mature enough" to recognize the need to cooperate where possible, even if friction is likely to arise in the foreseeable future. He expressed confidence that Washington is able to work with China "without endangering or in any way undermining our firm commitment to our partners in the Indo-Pacific region".