China will "not hesitate to start a war" if Taiwan declares independence
Chinese defense minister warns his American counterpart
Ibrahim Al-TarikMay 8, 2025
Beijing will "not hesitate to start a war" if Taiwan declares its independence, the Chinese defense minister warned his American counterpart on Friday - the latest salvo between the superpowers in the dispute over the island.
Wei Fenghe's warning came during his first face-to-face meeting with US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue security summit in Singapore.
Beijing regards democratic, self-governing Taiwan as its territory and has vowed to one day conquer the island, by force if necessary, and US-China tensions over the issue have escalated in recent months.
Wei warned Austin that "if anyone dares secede Taiwan from China, the Chinese army will definitely not hesitate to start a war no matter what the cost," Defense Ministry spokesman Wu Qian quoted the minister as saying during the meeting.
The Chinese minister pledged that Beijing will "smash any plot for 'Taiwan independence' and resolutely uphold the unification of the motherland," according to the Chinese Defense Ministry.
He "stressed that Taiwan is China's Taiwan... Using Taiwan to contain China will never catch on," the ministry said.
Austin "reiterated the importance of peace and stability in (Taiwan's) Straits, opposed unilateral changes to the status quo, and called on (China) to refrain from further destabilizing actions towards Taiwan," according to the US Department of Defense.
Tensions over Taiwan have escalated largely over increasing incursions by Chinese aircraft into the island's Air Defense Zone (ADIZ).
US President Joe Biden appeared to break with decades of US policy during a visit to Japan last month when, in response to a question, he said Washington would defend Taiwan militarily if it was attacked by China.
The White House has since insisted it has not changed its policy of "strategic ambiguity" over whether or not it would intervene.
Amid rising concerns over China-Taiwan tensions, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida issued a stark warning at the summit: "Today's Ukraine can be East Asia tomorrow."
The world must be "prepared for the emergence of an entity that tramples on the peace and security of other countries by force or threats without following the rules," he said.
He did not mention China by name in his speech, but repeatedly called for the "rules-based international order" to be maintained.
Austin is the latest senior US official to visit Asia as Washington seeks to shift its foreign policy focus back to the region after the Ukraine war.
In addition to the Taiwan issue, China and the United States are locked in a number of other disputes.
They have clashed over Russia's invasion of Ukraine, with Washington accusing Beijing of tacitly supporting Moscow.
China has called for talks to end the war but has not condemned Russia's actions and has repeatedly criticized US arms sales to Ukraine.
China's expansive claims in the South China Sea have also heightened tensions with Washington.
Beijing claims almost the entire resource-rich sea through which trillions of dollars in trade flows annually, while Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam have competing claims.
Austin arrived in Singapore late Thursday and held a series of meetings with his counterparts on Friday.
At a meeting with Southeast Asian defense ministers, he spoke about Washington's "strategy for maintaining an open, inclusive and rules-based regional security environment," according to the Singapore government.
His comments were a veiled reference to China's growing confidence in the region.
Austin will address the forum on Saturday, followed by Wei on Sunday. The summit will take place from June 10th to 12th and will be held for the first time in 2019 after being postponed twice due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
