The Biden administration reportedly summoned the Chinese ambassador to the White House on Thursday to condemn Beijing’s aggressive behavior toward Taiwan following House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit.
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told The Washington Post, which first reported the meeting, that Ambassador Qin Gang was brought in for a démarche, a form of protest through diplomatic means.
“We condemned the [People’s Republic of China’s] military actions, which are irresponsible and at odds with our long-standing goal of maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait,” Mr. Kirby said.
China fired a series of missiles into the sea off Taiwan’s coasts on Thursday. Some of them landed in Japan’s economic zone.
Ambassador Qin met with Kurt Campbell, a deputy assistant to President Biden who coordinates Indo-Pacific affairs on the National Security Council.
The White House told China its actions were unacceptable, but it wanted to keep lines of communication open and it maintains its “one-China” policy.
Beijing views Taiwan as a breakaway province, so it is sensitive to any claim that Taiwan is independent.
Beijing is deeply unhappy with Mrs. Pelosi’s visit. It announced sanctions against the speaker and her family on Friday and eight “countermeasures” against the U.S., including the cancelation of some military coordination and suspension of climate talks and cooperation on illegal immigration and narcotics enforcement.
