Taiwan VP leaves on delicate journey to United States

AFP / Sam Yeh

Taiwan Vice President William Lai left on Saturday for a delicate journey to the United States, which China has condemned, and Taiwanese officers worry might immediate extra Chinese navy exercise across the democratically ruled island.

Lai, the front-runner to turn out to be Taiwan’s president in elections in January, is formally making solely transit stops within the United States on his strategy to and from Paraguay for the swearing-in of its president.

Taipei and Washington say such stopovers are routine, and there’s no trigger for China to take “provocative” actions. However, Beijing has reacted with anger at what it sees as an additional signal of US help for Taiwan, which it claims as a sovereign Chinese territory.

China is more likely to launch navy drills subsequent week close to Taiwan, utilizing Lai’s stopovers within the United States as a pretext to intimidate voters forward of a subsequent 12 months’s election and make them “fear war”, Taiwanese officers say.

Lai, chatting with reporters at Taiwan’s most important worldwide airport at Taoyuan, made solely fleeting point out of the US a part of his journey, merely noting he was going to New York first.

He mentioned he would use the Paraguay go to to deepen ties with that nation and have “self-confident” exchanges with different nations, and meet with delegations from like-minded companions. He didn’t say who.

This will “let the international community understand that Taiwan is a country that adheres to democracy, freedom and human rights, and actively participates in international affairs”, Lai added.

It will even let the world find out about “our various efforts to maintain peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific”, he mentioned.

Lai went to Honduras final 12 months for the inauguration of its president and had a short although symbolic chat whereas there with US Vice President Kamala Harris. The United States has not introduced who could also be going to Paraguay subsequent week.

Beijing notably dislikes Lai, who has beforehand described himself as a “practical worker for Taiwan independence”. Lai has, nevertheless, repeatedly mentioned throughout the election marketing campaign he doesn’t search to alter the established order.

Before leaving, Lai wrote in English on social media platform X, previously referred to as Twitter, he was “excited to meet with US friends in transit” and to be going to Paraguay, considered one of simply 13 nations to take care of formal ties with Taipei.

Laura Rosenberger, chair of the Virginia-based American Institute in Taiwan (AIT), a US government-run non-profit that carries out unofficial relations with Taiwan, responded on X that AIT was trying ahead to welcoming him “during his transit en route to Paraguay”.

Neither Taiwan nor the United States has given precise particulars about his US schedule, and each are aiming to maintain that half low-key, in keeping with officers briefed on the journey.

Lai is to return from Paraguay through San Francisco and is due again in Taiwan on Friday, in keeping with the official schedule for the journey revealed on Saturday, which doesn’t point out the US legs.

The Paraguay a part of the journey can be essential, given China’s growing efforts to take Taiwan’s remaining allies.

Once a stalwart Taiwanese companion, Honduras switched relations with China in March.