Why the island is so prized

SITTING 100 miles off the coast of China between Japan and the Philippines, Taiwan is seen as a crucial nation for containing the rise of Beijing’s military power.

American strategists fear that if Taiwan falls to China it will become a jumping-off point for asserting territorial claims against nations such as Vietnam and Malaysia.

In recent months the increase in exercises by the Chinese military has prompted fears in the US it could be preparing for an invasion across the Taiwan Strait to reunify the island with the mainland.

Taiwan has been separate from China since 1949 when Mao Zedong’s Communists took power after defeating Chiang Kai-shek’s Kuomintang (KMT) nationalists in a civil war.

The KMT fled to Taiwan and formed their own government and the following year it became an ally of the US.

In 1979 America cut ties with Taiwan when Beijing took over China’s seat at the United Nations and the US said it would respect the ‘One China’ policy, which views Taiwan as Chinese.

But from 1987 relations improved, as did Beijing’s dealings with Taipei. That changed in 201 when the Taiwan refused to acknowledge the ‘One China’ policy and China suspended all communications with Taiwan.

In December 201 , Presidentelect Donald Trump broke with decades of US diplomatic policy by speaking by telephone with Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen.

Last year Chinese military jets made hundreds of incursions into Taiwan’s defence zone and tensions were ramped up when President Joe Biden said that America would help if China attacked.