Taiwan's Leader Confirms Presence Of US Troops On Island

Taiwan's Leader Confirms Presence of US Troops on Island

Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen told CNN on Thursday that the US military forces are located on the island to train the local troops

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 28th October, 2021) Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen told CNN on Thursday that the US military forces are located on the island to train the local troops.

Earlier in the month, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing US officials, that an American contingent was secretly training the Taiwanese ground forces on the island for at least a year.

"We have a wide range of cooperation with the US aiming at increasing our defense capability," Tsai said in an interview. The official did not specify the number of the US military in Taiwan, but said that they are "not as many as people thought.

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The Taiwanese president also mentioned the threat from Beijing, which she says is increasing "every day."

The military support for Taiwan is stipulated in the US law of 1979, which also provides for the principle of 'One China.'

Official relations between mainland China and Taiwan were severed in 1949. Since then, the island has been governed independently and asserts its position as an autonomous country, while Beijing views Taiwan as a breakaway province. Taiwan has political and economic relations with many other nations that recognize its sovereignty.

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