White House summons Chinese ambassador for rebuke on Taiwan response

China’s show of force against Taiwan on Thursday included firing missiles into the sea and threatening the island’s territorial waters. Taiwan said China fired 11 ballistic missiles into the waters off its northeastern and southwestern coasts, and Japanese officials said five Chinese missiles landed in Japan’s exclusive economic zone.

The White House also reiterated to Qin that it wants to keep all lines of communication open and that nothing has changed about the United States’ one-China policy, which stipulates that there is a single Chinese entity and no independent enclaves. But the White House also stressed that it found Beijing’s actions unacceptable and would stand up for its values in the Indo-Pacific.

The meeting, which has not been previously reported, was between Qin and Kurt Campbell, deputy assistant to President Biden and coordinator for Indo-Pacific affairs on the National Security Council, according to a White House official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to share details of a private conversation.

China’s military actions Thursday increased tensions in the Taiwan Strait to the highest level in decades, raising fears of a dangerous miscalculation in one of the world’s most charged geopolitical flash points. Beijing has openly voiced its anger over Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan, which it considers part of its territory awaiting unification, and U.S.-China relations were already strained because of disputes over trade, human rights and other issues.

Pelosi: Why I’m visiting Taiwan

The White House highlighted to Qin a statement from the Group of Seven industrialized democracies, Kirby said, which stressed that China should not use Pelosi’s visit as a pretext for aggressive military action in the Taiwan Strait. The White House also expressed support for a statement from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, which called on all sides to de-escalate tensions and engage in dialogue.

“We made clear once again as we have done privately at the highest levels and publicly: Nothing has changed about our one-China policy. We also made clear that the United States is prepared for what Beijing chooses to do,” Kirby said. “We will not seek and do not want a crisis. At the same time, we will not be deterred from operating in the seas and skies of the Western…