Australian Defence Peter Dutton said on Saturday that his nation would be willing to support the USA if it were to take action to defend Taiwan against Chinese aggression. Dutton said that it was "inconceivable" that Australia should not join in the effort to stand by its ally. The remarks come shortly after US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken warned of 'action' against the Chinese if Taiwan was overtly threatened.
"(China's) been very clear about their intent to go into Taiwan and we need to make sure that there is a high level of preparedness, a greater sense of deterrence by our capability, and that is how I think we put our country in a position of strength," Dutton told The Australian newspaper in an interview.
In a forum hosted by the New York Times on Monday, Anthony Blinken had repeated affirmations of US support for Taiwan but also said that many other countries were invested in peace and stability in the region.
The UK, Australia and the US have also inked the AUKUS pact to share technology related to nuclear submarines as well as intelligence and other forms of information in a bid to strengthen one another and also expand influence in the Asia-Pacific region where Chinese aggression is manifesting itself. US President Joe Biden and Chinese Premier Xi Jinping are scheduled to meet on Tuesday. Senior Chinese diplomat Wang Yi earned the US not to send 'wrong signals' to the world regarding the Taiwan issue. China maintains that Taiwan is a rogue province that will be assimilated into the Chinese Republic by any means necessary.