BEIJING (REUTERS) – Senior Chinese diplomat Wang Yi told US Secretary of State Antony Blinken not to “send wrong signals” to Taiwan pro-independence forces, China’s foreign ministry said in a statement on Saturday (Nov 13).

Both men also spoke about the virtual meeting that Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Joe Biden would have next Tuesday morning Asia time.

Cross-strait tensions have been rising in recent months, with Taiwan complaining for a year or more of repeated missions by China’s air force near the self-ruled island that Beijing claims as its own.

Separately, Australian Defence Minister Peter Dutton said on Saturday that it would be “inconceivable” for Australia not to join the United States should Washington take action to defend Taiwan.

Mr Blinken on Wednesday said the United States and its allies would take unspecified “action” if China were to use force to alter the status quo over Taiwan.

“It would be inconceivable that we wouldn’t support the US in an action if the US chose to take that action,” Mr Dutton told The Australian newspaper in an interview.

“And, again, I think we should be very frank and honest about that, look at all of the facts and circumstances without pre-committing, and maybe there are circumstances where we wouldn’t take up that option, (but) I can’t conceive of those circumstances.”

Meanwhile, Japan’s new foreign minister, Yoshimasa Hayashi, said on Saturday Mr Blinken assured him in a phone call that the US commitment to defending Japan, including southern islets claimed by China, was unwavering.

Japan’s ties with China have been plagued by a territorial dispute over a group of Japanese-administered islands in the East China Sea, called the Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China, as well as the legacy of Japan’s past military aggression.

“Secretary Blinken stated that US commitment to defending Japan, including the application of Article 5 of the Japan-US Security Treaty for the Senkaku islands, was unwavering,” Mr Hayashi told reporters.

The treaty’s article 5 says each party recognises an armed attack on territories under Japan’s administration would be dangerous to its peace and safety, and it would act to meet the common danger.

Mr Hayashi said he and Blinken shared the view that the peace and stability of the Taiwan Strait was important.

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