China will have to confront US if it invades Taiwan as Taiwan and the US signed a defence treaty in 1954. China will have to face the US and even other allied nations such as Canada, the UK, Australia and France if it decides to invade Taiwan.
Beijing [China], March 16: There are reports that China may emulate Russia and may attack Taiwan. However, it is not as simple or easy as it appears or is thought. Strategic, geographical, and tactical issues make it difficult for Chinese forces to enter Taiwan and annex it.
Taiwan is surrounded by the sea from all sides and is around 161 km from mainland China. This means China will have to carry out an amphibian attack, unlike Ukraine invasion in which Russian forces could easily cross the border, reported The Singapore Post.
The amphibian attack would be resource-consuming and difficult to gauge real progress. The presence of major military powers from the Taiwanese side would make it further problematic.
Attacking Taiwan means China will have to face several challenges. The most crucial one is confronting the militarily superior US. The US has had no duty to protect Ukraine. But Taiwan and the US signed a defence treaty in 1954.
Also, the US is the main arms supplier to Taiwan. So China will have to face the US and even other allied nations such as Canada, the UK, Australia and France if it decides to invade Taiwan, reported The Singapore Post.
The US has deployed its troops in Taiwan amid reports of potential Chinese aggression. And US warships conduct routine patrolling in the Taiwan Straits. France is assisting Taiwan in upgrading its Kang Ding-Class Frigates.
Japan and Australia, too, have extended their support to the sovereignty of Taiwan and declared that it would not stand by if China attacks the island nation, reported The Singapore Post.
"We have to protect Taiwan as a democratic country," said Yasuhide Nakayama, Japan's deputy defence minister. Japan knows independent Taiwan is important for its security and for the peace in the Taiwan Strait as it conflicts with China over the ownership of the Senkaku Islands.
Japan and the US have already drawn up a plan if China tries to invade Taiwan. Australia has announced that it would extend full support to Taiwan if China dares to conduct military action. "I think we do whatever we can to deter China from acts of aggression in our region," Australian Defence Minister Peter Dutton said.
Moreover, the 2019 US Pentagon Report said China lacked equipment for a direct assault on Taiwan, such as large amphibious assault ships and medium landing crafts.
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has recently reiterated that Taiwan is an integral part of mainland China and would be reunified. At the same time, he warned the western block to stay away from interfering in the Taiwan matter.
China has refused to join the world in condemning Russia for attacking Ukraine. Rather, it drew a parallel between the Ukraine fight for independence and the Chinese claim on Taiwan as the issue of preserving sovereignty, reported The Singapore Post. (ANI)
