Russia could support China attack on Taiwan: Taiwan security chief

Taipei, Dec. 17 (CNA) Russia could support China with military logistics and engage in provocations elsewhere in the Indo-Pacific region if China were to use force against Taiwan, Director-General of Taiwan's National Security Bureau (NSB) Tsai Ming-yen (蔡明彥) said Wednesday.

Such provocations by Russia would "increase regional complexity," Tsai told Taiwanese lawmakers while answering questions at a meeting of the Legislative Yuan's Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee.

The committee invited Tsai and Defense Minister Wellington Koo (顧立雄) to brief lawmakers on potential conflict flashpoints near Taiwan and on military preparedness.

Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers Chen Chun-yu (陳俊宇) and Wang Ting-yu (王定宇) raised questions about the role Russia might play if China were to attack Taiwan.

Attention should be paid to whether Russia conducts military patrols around the Taiwan Strait, the Western Pacific and Japan's Miyako Island, the national security chief said.

Such actions would make a response by the United States and its allies more complicated, he told lawmakers.

Tsai said the NSB has been monitoring potential China-Russia military cooperation through international intelligence exchanges.

He said he had already attended "nearly 100 formal bilateral meetings" with 45 other countries on Indo-Pacific security issues this year.

Defense Minister Koo said China expressed strong dissatisfaction after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi made remarks related to a "Taiwan contingency."

Specifically, Takaichi told the Japanese parliament on Nov. 7 that use of force against Taiwan by China could constitute a "survival-threatening" crisis for Japan that would warrant a military response from Tokyo.

On Wednesday, Koo told Taiwanese lawmakers that beyond military exercises, a recent joint China-Russia aerial patrol sent a "clear message" that China and Russia have a cooperative relationship in the region.