TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — China lodged complaints on Monday (Aug. 21) after the U.S., Japan, and South Korea criticized Beijing’s “aggressive behavior” in a joint statement following the Camp David Summit.
On Friday (Aug. 18), U.S. President Joe Biden, Japan Prime Minister Kishida Fumio, and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol met at Camp David in Maryland to mark the first trilateral summit between the three leaders, a significant achievement especially given Japan-South Korea historical animosities. The summit resulted in a joint statement, in which Japan and South Korea used some of their strongest language yet to express their opposition to China’s "dangerous and aggressive behavior" in maritime disputes in the East and South China Sea, per Reuters.
The statement read, "Regarding the dangerous and aggressive actions we recently witnessed by the People's Republic of China in support of its illegal maritime territorial claims in the South China Sea, we ... strongly oppose any attempt to unilaterally change the status quo in the Indo-Pacific waters.” It also referenced Taiwan, stating, "There is no change in our basic positions on Taiwan, and we call for a peaceful resolution of cross-strait issues.”
In response, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Wang Wenbin said the three leaders had "smeared and attacked China on Taiwan-related and maritime issues” and “grossly interfered in China's internal affairs.” China also accused them of attempting “to revive Cold War mentality by inciting division and confrontation represented by various closed and exclusive small circles.”
Beijing, which is a vital economic partner of both Japan and Korea, said the U.S. “deliberately sowed discord between China and its neighbors.” Chinese leader Xi Jinping has labeled U.S. actions as “all-around containment, encirclement, and suppression” of China’s development.
Beijing has consistently warned Tokyo and Seoul not to get involved with Taiwan. The statement’s language on Taiwan, which could be read as a warning against any attempt to take Taiwan by force, has rattled China, as it draws its Asian neighbors closer to a clash that it sees as purely an internal affair.
Analysts observed China’s new round of military drills around Taiwan on Saturday (Aug. 19), apart from reacting to Taiwan Vice President Lai Ching-te's (賴清德) transit in the U.S., serving as a warning in response to the Camp David Summit. According to Lin Ying-yu (林穎佑), an assistant professor at Tamkang University, “China is not only aiming at Lai but also issuing a warning to the U.S., Japan, and South Korea after the three countries strengthened military cooperation.”
However, the scale of the drills was notably smaller, as Lai’s transit did not cross a red line with China. This contrasts with the multi-day, blockade-style exercises that China staged in August 2022 and April 2023, when former U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan and Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) met with U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, respectively.
Aside from broaching China, the joint statement at Camp David also affirmed the U.S., Japan, and South Korea’s intent to establish a three-way hotline to respond to regional crises, hold trilateral military training exercises, share early-warning data on North Korea amid its nuclear threat, and begin hosting summits each year.
