On July 29, Ambassador Ming-Yen Tsai was interviewed live by BBC World News, a major international media outlet, on a range of topics related to U.S.-China-Taiwan relations.
In response to the host's question about whether the July 28 telephone conversation between U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping reflected heightened tensions in the Taiwan Strait, Ambassador Tsai said it was not in China's interest for tensions to rise too high, as it would impact China's economic growth and Communist Party rule. Deescalation would be in the interest of all parties, which was the main reason for Biden's phone conversation with Xi.
On the question of whether the Russian invasion of Ukraine has made the Taiwanese government more nervous about the future, Taiwan is closely following the war in Ukraine and is making the necessary preparations, including continuing to invest more resources in strengthening its national defence and enhancing its asymmetric warfare capabilities.
Regarding the possible visit of US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan, Ambassador Tsai explained that Taiwan cherishes the bipartisan support for Taiwan in the US Congress, and stated that China is trying to isolate Taiwan, which in turn makes Taiwan gain greater international solidarity.
The BBC World News interview will be broadcast on the BBC World News television and World Service radio channels in over 200 countries worldwide.
Photo credit: BBC World News
