Veteran US senator John Cornyn, a Republican, on Tuesday deleted a tweet that had provoked outrage in China.
Cornyn had tweeted on Monday that the US had 30,000 troops in Taiwan. Cornyn had included the claim about Taiwan in a post on US troop numbers in multiple countries. The US had deployed troops in Taiwan for several years until withdrawing them in 1979, when Washington established diplomatic ties with China.
China's Global Times had lashed out at Cornyn over the tweet. "The tweet saying U.S. is stationing '30,000 troops' in China's Taiwan island could be a jaw-dropping mistake or hype from a 'dotard' senator, but it is shocking enough to see how irresponsible American politicians are on crucial issue of Taiwan Straits," Global Times reported.
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The article demanded an explanation from Taiwan and noted China would “immediately launch a war to eliminate and expel U.S. Soldiers”. Cornyn had been an votary of the US boosting ties with Taiwan and had introduced legislation to establish a partnership between Taiwan's military and the US National Guard.
