The American government’s good cop, bad cop routine in response to Beijing’s nonstop bad behavior, including toward Taiwan, continues.
President Trump is the good cop, going out of his way these days to gush over the likeability and wonderfulness of totalitarian dictator Xi Jinping. Especially by imposing a months-long and open-ended delay in completing the latest major sale of arms to Taipei, $14 billion worth, President Trump has seemed to be the team member who will do and say, if not anything, at least quite a lot to smooth the waters for his diplomatic partner.
Various non-Trump members of the administration are the bad cops, gruff and rude enough to notice, describe, and object, sort of, to what the People’s Republic of China as led by Xi actually does (Reuters, October 9, 2026).
China’s maritime actions off Taiwan’s east coast are “deeply destabilising” and only worsen tension, the US State Department said, after Reuters reported the first known sighting of a Chinese militia boat in those waters in August.
China, which views Taiwan as its own territory, has stepped up activity off the island’s east coast since June with regular coast guard patrols.
Officials in Taiwan, which rejects Beijing’s sovereignty claims, say they believe China is practicing for a possible maritime blockade using overlapping military, paramilitary and civilian assets.
Taipei regards the area off its east coast as critical to wartime supply routes from allies in the event of a blockade or conflict.
“China’s actions are deeply destabilising,” [said a State Department spokesman.] “By asserting authorities around maritime areas that Taiwan has peacefully administered for over 70 years, China only exacerbates tensions and undermines the peaceful resolution of issues that it claims to seek.”
The United States urges Beijing to cease its pressure against Taiwan and instead engage in “meaningful dialogue with Taiwan’s democratically elected authorities”, the spokesperson added.
“Deeply destabilizing”? “You’re not serving your own stated goals”? “Engage in meaningful dialogue instead”? Not the toughest bad-cop lines ever. The good cops, bad cops routine needs work.
Meanwhile, the Taiwanese speak of “China Coast Guard maritime harassment drills” and say that “The purpose of militia boats is to conduct substantive harassment.”
Also see:
Reuters: “China militia boat spotted for first time off Taiwan’s east coast, patrol finds” (October 8, 2026)
“A Chinese militia boat was spotted along with two other vessels off Taiwan’s Pacific coast in August, according to a surveillance report reviewed by Reuters, the first known sighting of such a craft in the sensitive area. The report by Taiwan’s Apex Aviation identifies the Minfudingyu 07902 as a fishing boat that doubles as a Chinese militia vessel, which was seen operating with a Chinese coast guard cutter and a research vessel one day in mid-August.”
