Kurt Campbell Stresses the Importance of Sustaining Status Quo in the Taiwan Strait

On May 9, when attending a virtual Transatlantic Dialogue on the Indo-Pacific, Campbell, White House national security coordinator for Indo-Pacific Affairs, said that the US and Europe have a profound interest across the board in the maintenance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, and sustaining the status quo there is critical.

He remarked that the joint statement issued by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and Russia during the Beijing Winter Olympics in February struck Asian countries, causing their extensive concerns. Afterward, the Russian invasion of Ukraine evoked more strategic thinking among countries in the Indo-Pacific region, leading to their involvement in European and Ukrainian issues far beyond ever.

Following the Russian-Ukrainian war, despite Europe being in the spotlight of the international community, many senior U.S. officials have repeatedly emphasized that the Indo-Pacific is still at the center of U.S. diplomacy, and that the US views the maintenance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait as its important interest. US President Biden reportedly will convene a two-day summit with leaders of Southeast Asian countries on the 12th, followed by a visit to Japan and South Korea from the 20th to 24th, a trip that will include a quadrilateral meeting with the leaders of Japan, Australia, and India in Tokyo to discuss join hands to counter the challenges posed by the CCP.

Campbell believes that Biden’s first visit to Asia conveys an important message, marking that the United States recognizes “the larger, more fundamental challenges for the 21st century really lay in the Indo-Pacific region.”