CHINA will invade Taiwan, Republican Party figures fear as the US vows to protect the country.

US President Joe Biden promised earlier this week that the US would intervene militarily to defend Taiwan if it came under attack from China. His comments came amid growing concern regarding Chinese aggression. Mr Biden said: “America is committed to a one-China policy but that does not mean China has the jurisdiction to use force to take Taiwan. My expectation is that will not happen.”

While the US President is confident that China won’t attack, some figures in Washington have made more pessimistic predictions.

Representative Michael McCaul, a Republican who sits on House Committee on Foreign Affairs, said in January that China will invade.

He believed the attack would come soon after the Winter Olympics in February, which were held in Beijing.

Mr McCaul said: “I do think after the Olympics — China has gotten so provocative, so aggressive in the South China Sea, that you are going to see the CCP, the [Chinese] Communist Party invading Taiwan.

Michael Pillsbury, a former public official in the US who was influential in determining Donald Trump’s foreign policy, also expressed concerns in March that China could “make a move” on Taiwan.

He made the comments while analysing whether the US has enough power to hold China to account.

Mr Pillsbury also told Fox Business: “We still have the military balance in our favour…but locally in Asia they have been building rapidly and they are beginning to surpass us, that’s the view of the secretary of defence.

“They have a right to say what they say…once again we see the Chinese side arrogantly slapping down the American side, and then our side had no comeback.”

Taiwan is an island, roughly 100 miles from the coast of south east China.

It sits in the so-called “first island chain”, which includes a list of US-friendly territories that are crucial to US foreign policy.

Source: https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/1617405/china-news-invade-taiwan-us-defend-country-joe-biden-spt