Hypocrisy can be defined as “two-facedness”, or can refer to a person who pretends to have moral standards or opinions that they do not possess.

Such is the definition of the attitude of the United States of America and its current president, Joe Biden. Unfortunately, this state of hypocrisy appears to remain on the agenda of the US administration and its politicians in its dealings with China.

The US officially recognizes the People’s Republic of China as the one and only China. It has no official recognition of Taiwan. But last month, Biden approved a $567 million defense package for Taiwan, about 60 percent more than its arms allocation to Taiwan last year. Earlier, Biden approved $2 billion in a foreign financing program for security partners in the Indo-Pacific to counter “Chinese aggression”. Taiwan expects to get the bulk of the loot, with the Philippines a second priority. This latest package from the debt-ridden US will be used for military education and training and to provide assistance to Taiwan. Indeed, the “two-facedness” definition fits the US precisely.

Beijing reacted angrily, with Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian urging Washington to stop arming Taiwan in any form, adding, “The US insistence on supporting Taiwan independence with weapons will only backfire and lead to self-inflicted consequences.”

In April, Joe Biden signed a $95 billion aid package for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan. Speaking from the White House after signing the bill, Biden said it was a good day for America, a good day for Ukraine, and “a good day for world peace”. This is another example of hypocrisy. By allocating huge sums for war in the name of world peace, 
thousands of men, women 
and children, the majority being innocent civilians, are killed through US funding

Although there is still a significant backlog of arms deliveries to Taiwan, numerous weapons are starting to make their way to the island. The first batch of an order of 400 Harpoon missile systems was recently delivered to Taiwan, and the first batch of US-made F-16V fighter jets reportedly will arrive before the end of the year. The first batch of M1A2T Abrams tanks is expected to arrive in December. By the end of 2026, some 126 missiles will have been delivered to Taiwan. The package will also include military drones, vital to the US and Taiwan’s asymmetric strategy.

This latest package differs slightly from previous contributions to Taiwan’s arsenal. It comes as a drawdown from the Department of Defense’s (DoD) own stocks, which is the fastest tool available for delivering military aid. The DoD relied heavily on this process to support Ukraine.

This supply of weaponry to Taiwan appears to indicate that the US is preparing for another proxy war as it has done in the Middle East. In another example of the US’ “two-facedness”, Biden called for a ceasefire in Gaza while at the same time supplying Israel with arms to assault Palestine and its neighbors.

In April, Biden signed a $95 billion aid package for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan. Speaking from the White House after signing the bill, Biden said it was a good day for America, a good day for Ukraine, and “a good day for world peace”. This is another example of hypocrisy. By allocating huge sums for war in the name of world peace, thousands of men, women and children, the majority being innocent civilians, are killed through US funding.

Although the US does not have diplomatic relations with Taiwan, it has set up a trade office in Taipei under the 1979 Taiwan Relations Act (TRA), which is known as the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT). By using the AIT as a conduit, the US conducts its arms deals and other activities with Taiwan. It is understood that the AIT was instrumental in organizing the trip to Taipei by then-House of Representatives speaker Nancy Pelosi, as well as other US congressional visits.

The TRA states that “the United States will make available to Taiwan such defense articles and defense services in such quantity as may be necessary to enable Taiwan to maintain a sufficient self-defense capability” and “shall maintain the capacity of the United States to resist any resort to force or other forms of coercion that would jeopardize the security, or social or economic system, of the people on Taiwan”.

In other words, it allows the US to set up a military base on Chinese soil.

The TRA does not recognize the term “Republic of China” and instead uses the “governing authorities on Taiwan”.

So, the US is in a tangle. According to its own laws, it has a right to supply the island with arms to use against the Chinese mainland while not recognizing Taiwan as a sovereign state. Yet it also recognizes the People’s Republic of China as the one and only Chinese sovereign state. What a hypocritical state of affairs.

The author is a former chief information officer of the Hong Kong government, a PR and media consultant, and a veteran journalist.

The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.