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Chinese foreign relations

Kamala Harris' Foreign Policy Approach to Taiwan and China Revealed through Past Speeches and Diplomatic Visits

Strategic Insights

— 1 min read

US Vice President Kamala Harris has been a key figure in shaping the Biden administration's Indo-Pacific strategy, strengthening alliances with regional partners, and engaging in major diplomatic issues. Observers can gain insight into her approach to foreign policy toward Taiwan and China based on her past speeches and trips abroad. Harris has made 17 trips abroad, visited 21 countries, and met with more than 150 world leaders in the past three and a half years as vice president, including four trips to Asia.

Key Takeaways:

  • Harris endorsed the Taiwan Travel Act in 2018, allowing US officials to travel to Taiwan to meet their Taiwanese counterparts and vice versa.
  • During her 2022 speech aboard the USS Howard in Japan, Harris criticized China's aggressive behavior in the East China Sea and South China Sea and provocations across the Taiwan Strait.
  • Harris stated that the US will continue to oppose unilateral changes to the status quo and support Taiwan's self-defense in accordance with the US' longstanding policy.
  • She met with Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te in 2022 at the inauguration ceremony for Honduras' president and has met several times with US Indo-Pacific treaty allies.
  • As senator, Harris co-sponsored bills to support Hong Kong and the Uyghur ethnic minority in Xinjiang, and helped pass the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act of 2019 and the Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act of 2020.
  • Harris has repeatedly expressed concern about China's 'unfair trade practices,' including non-traditional espionage activities and human rights issues.

Statistics:

  • Harris has made 17 trips abroad in the past three and a half years as vice president.
  • She has visited 21 countries and met with more than 150 world leaders.
  • Four of Harris' trips were to Asia, including 2022 APEC and 2023 ASEAN summits.
  • Harris met with Chinese leader Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the 2022 APEC summit to discuss 'open lines of communication' and tensions between the two countries.
  • The US will continue to oppose unilateral changes to the status quo and support Taiwan's self-defense in accordance with the US' longstanding policy.

Sources:

  • CNA, "Kamala Harris' Asia trip: What she said and what she did"
  • White House, "Meeting Summary: Vice President Kamala Harris and Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. meeting"
  • Congressional Record, "Hearing on China's Non-Traditional Espionage Activities"
  • Congressional Record, "Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act of 2020"

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