In a high-profile meeting on Monday, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing in an attempt to fortify ties and manage what is considered one of most important global relationships. At the press conference following the meeting, Blinken emphasized the mutual responsibility of both the United States and China to handle this relationship judiciously. He acknowledging the implications not only for their own nations but for the stability and prosperity of the world. However, President Xi was notably absent from the press conference, and Blinken seemed to give the green light for a Chinese takeover of Taiwan when he stated that the U.S. does “not support Taiwan independence.”

Watch the clip below:

Blinken’s continued at the press conference stating:

“We remain committed to our One China Policy with the three communiques, the Taiwan Relations Act, the six assurances. We do not support Taiwan’s independence. We made it clear that we oppose any unilateral changes to the status quo by either side. We have been clear and consistent in our policy, and it’s very important that we preserve that status quo that has maintained peace and stability across the Strait for decades,”

“At the same time, we and many others have deep concerns about some of the provocative actions that China has taken in recent years going back to 2016. And the reason that this is a concern for so many countries, not just the United States, is that were there to be a crisis over Taiwan, the likelihood is that could produce an economic crisis that could affect quite literally the entire world,”

“Fifty percent of commercial container traffic goes through the Taiwan Strait every day. Seventy percent of semiconductors are manufactured in Taiwan. If as a result of a crisis that was taken offline, it would have dramatic consequences for virtually every country around the world.

“President Biden believes strongly that one of the successful aspects in our relationship with China going back five decades has been the responsible management of the Taiwan question. We continue to believe that’s essential,”

Over the past year, the U.S. and China have traded at a volume worth over $700 billion which shows how connected the two nation’s economies have become.  U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen’s has recently stated that removing these connections would be disastrous for the U.S. and global markets. Will these financial connections force the U.S. to turn their back on Taiwan? It seems like Blinken is thinking that way.

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