United States Defense Secretary lloyd Austin made several comments in support of defending Taiwan against a Chinese invasion on Wednesday. Austin's remarks came during a speech at the International Institute for Strategic Studies think tank in Singapore.
Secretary Austin said that the US “will not flinch when [its] interests are threatened. Yet [it] [does] not seek confrontation.” He said the US will “stay focused on helping Taiwan to defend itself or having the capabilities to defend itself going forward.”
Austin added that the US will distribute 40 million COVID-19 vaccine doses to its partners in the Indo-Pacific region, Taiwan included.
Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs thanked Austin for his show of support. It said that Taiwan-US relations have continued to flourish under President Joe Biden, who took office in January this year. The ministry also thanked the US for its pledge of vaccines.