U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blanken has said that China is advancing the alliance with Taiwan “on a much faster timeline” than previously expected.
He said that Beijing had decided that the status quo was no longer acceptable.
In his opening address to the Communist Party Congress in Beijing on Sunday, President Xi Jinping refused to rule out the use of force for unification with Taiwan.
China views the autonomous island as part of its territory, but Taiwan sees itself as separate from the mainland.
Last month, US President Joe Biden said US forces would defend Taiwan in the event of a Chinese attack – despite an official US policy of ambiguity on the issue.
Speaking at an event with former secretary Condoleezza Rice at Stanford University on Tuesday, Mr Blanken said Beijing would use coercion and possibly force if it could not achieve unity peacefully.
This is what is adversely affecting the status quo and creating tremendous tension, he said.
Mr Blanken added that the US would honor its commitments to Taiwan and support the island’s ability to defend itself.
Washington has always acted with diplomatic rigor on the issue of Taiwan and China.
His official policy is not to commit to military action on Taiwan – but US President Biden has seemingly gone against this by repeatedly insisting that Washington will defend Taiwan.
Secretary Blanken’s comments come as China holds its twice-a-decade party congress, with President Xi Jinping expected to be elected for a historic third term.
In his opening remarks on Sunday, Mr Xi insisted that “full reunification of our country is essential and will be realized”.
He said that we will continue to strive for peaceful reunification with the utmost sincerity and utmost effort, but we will not promise to desist from the use of force.
Tensions between the US and China have been high in recent months, especially after US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taipei.
China staged large-scale military exercises in response to Ms Pelosi’s visit, which Taiwan condemned as “extremely provocative”.
