Taiwan deepening security cooperation with US, other 'allies'

By Ben Blanchard

TAIPEI (Reuters) - Taiwan's combat effectiveness has improved thanks to its deepening security partnership with the United States and other friends and "allies" but this is kept deliberately low key, the island's defence minister said.

Democratically governed Taiwan, which is claimed by China as its own territory, does not have treaty based defence relations with Washington or any of its allies, though the United States is bound by law to provide Taiwan with the means to defend itself and military officials from both sides do conduct visits and training.

Beijing frequently erupts with anger at any hint of countries having military ties with Taiwan, and has repeatedly sanctioned U.S. arms companies for selling weapons to Taipei.

Speaking to reporters on Wednesday in comments embargoed until Thursday, Defence Minister Wellington Koo made rare comments about those relations, given their sensitivity.

"In the past few years, Taiwan, the United States and other friends and allies have continuously strengthened security partnerships and continued to expand and deepen military cooperation," he said.

"This has contributed to the improvement of the national military's combat effectiveness and regional peace and stability."

Cooperation focuses on "substantively improving" combat effectiveness rather than just "formality", Koo said.

"The Defence Ministry has never publicised this foreign military cooperation with great fanfare. This is to take into account the international situation and respect for our friends and allies; it is also to avoid unnecessary interference," he added, in a veiled reference to China.

Beijing, which has never renounced the use of force to bring Taiwan under its control, has been staging regular exercises around the island for five years.

China held "punishment" war games around Taiwan in late May shortly after Lai Ching-te took office as president in anger at what Beijing viewed as "separatist" content in his inauguration speech. Lai has repeatedly offered talks with China but been rebuffed. He says only Taiwan's people can decide their future.

The Republic of China's government fled to Taiwan in 1949 after losing a civil war with Mao Zedong's communists and it remains Taiwan's official name. No peace treaty or armistice has ever been signed.

(Reporting by Ben Blanchard; Editing by Sharon Singleton)

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