US navy admiral visits Taiwan, deepening divide with China

A senior US naval official, with responsibility for military intelligence in the Asia Pacific, has made an undercover visit to Taiwan in an apparent last-ditch effort by the outgoing administration of President Donald Trump to strengthen relations with the self-ruled island -- a move which is certain to outrage China.

The top military intelligence official at US Indo-Pacific command Navy Rear Admiral Michael Studeman visited Taiwan, Reuters reported citing two sources, on Sunday.

Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it welcomed the visit but would not give any details "since this itinerary has not been made public."

The Pentagon also declined to comment on the visit.

A report on Friday suggested that officials in Taipei and Washington were in talks to schedule a three-day visit to the island by US Environmental Protection Agency administrator Andrew Wheeler, next month. 

Taiwanese Prime Minister Su Tseng-chang confirmed the report, saying Wheeler “will come to Taiwan, to have bilateral discussions on international cooperation on environmental protection issues.”

This would be the third such visit to the island by US officials, this year.

In August, Washington sent Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar to Taipei. A month later, Undersecretary of State Keith Krach visited the island.

China reacted with anger on both occasions, describing them as a political stunt aimed at promoting Taiwan’s attempts to gain independence from the mainland.

These official visits deteriorate the already-troubled relations between Washington and Beijing, which are locking horns over a range of issues, including the coronavirus pandemic, trade, the South China Sea, Hong Kong and Tibet.

China, which maintains sovereignty over self-ruled Taiwan, has constantly warned against any official exchanges between Washington and Taipei.

ME