Biden: US would intervene with military to defend Taiwan

By JOSH BOAK, AAMER MADHANI and ZEKE MILLER
Associated Press

TOKYO (AP) — President Joe Biden says the U.S. would intervene militarily if China were to invade Taiwan. It was one of the most forceful presidential statements in support of Taiwan’s self-governing in decades. Biden spoke at a news conference Monday in Tokyo and said the burden to protect Taiwan was “even stronger” after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The U.S. traditionally has avoided making such an explicit security guarantee to Taiwan, with which it no longer has a mutual defense treaty. Biden’s comments drew strong criticism from the mainland, which has claimed Taiwan to be a rogue province.