US urges China to engage in 'meaningful diplomacy' on Taiwan

By Rabia Iclal Turan

WASHINGTON (AA) - The US on Thursday urged China to engage in “meaningful diplomacy” rather than military, diplomatic and economic pressure on Taiwan.

"We continue to urge Beijing to cease its military, diplomatic and economic pressure against Taiwan and instead engage in meaningful diplomacy," State Department spokesman Vedant Patel told reporters during a daily press briefing.

Asked about the tension in the Taiwan Strait after China on Wednesday began what it called a “special inspection operation” in the Taiwan Strait in response to Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-Wen’s meeting with the US House speaker Kevin McCarthy, Patel said: “We remain committed to maintaining open channels of communication so as to prevent the risk of any kind of miscalculation”.

“Our channels remain open and we have always consistently urged restraint,” he stressed.

Patel said that the US and China have managed the “differences” over Taiwan for over 40 years, adding that the peace and stability of the Taiwan Strait are not only in US interests but also the interest of global concern.

"There is no reason to turn this transit, which is consistent with longstanding US policy, into something that it's not or to use it as a pretext to overreact," he added.