Global Courant
Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen and newly elected President William Lai Ching-te welcomed United States support for the self-ruled island during meetings with an unofficial delegation from Washington, amid anger in Beijing over overseas governments’ congratulations to Taiwan with its country. weekend elections.
The US delegation – including former US National Security Advisor Stephen Hadley and former Deputy Secretary of State James Steinberg – arrived in Taiwan on Sunday, a day after Lai, currently the vice president, won an unprecedented third term for the ruling Democratic Progressive Party ( DPP) had won. ).
Beijing, which claims Taiwan as its own and has not ruled out the use of force to achieve its goals, has long criticized Lai as a so-called “separatist.” It called the elections a choice between “peace and war.”
Ultimately, Lai won 40.1 percent of the vote, compared to 33.5 percent for Hou Yu-ih of the nationalist Kuomintang (KMT), his closest rival.
“Your visit is very meaningful. It fully demonstrates US support for Taiwanese democracy and underlines the close and solid partnership between Taiwan and the US,” Tsai told US delegates.
Lai, who formally takes over as president on May 20, said he hoped for continued US support and that his government would continue to defend peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.
“Taiwan’s democracy has set a shining example for the world,” Hadley said in comments from Tsai’s office.
“We are honored to meet with you today to reaffirm that America’s commitment to Taiwan is rock-solid, principled and bipartisan and that the United States stands with its friends,” he added.
The DPP says Taiwan’s 23.5 million people should decide the island’s future and has said it supports the status quo, in which Taiwan governs itself but refrains from formally declaring independence.
Beijing insists that the island is part of its territory. After the election, it said what it called “peaceful reunification” was inevitable.
The unofficial US delegation to the Taiwanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Taiwan Ministry of Foreign Affairs via AP)
It lashed out at countries that sent their congratulations to Taiwan for the smooth vote.
In a statement, China’s Foreign Ministry condemned US Secretary of State Antony Blinken for congratulating Lai on his victory, adding: “The basic fact that… Taiwan is part of China will not change.”
Taiwan said this statement is “completely inconsistent with international understanding and the current situation in the border area. It goes against the expectations of global democratic communities and the will of the Taiwanese people to uphold democratic values. Such clichés are not worth refuting.”
‘Respect the results’
Washington is pursuing a policy of what it calls “strategic ambiguity” on the island. Although the country maintains formal diplomatic ties with Beijing, it is bound by law to support Taiwan and opposes any attempt to change the status quo by force.
The last time a US delegation visited immediately after an election was in 2016, after Tsai was first elected president.
At that point, Beijing refused her offer to talk and cut off all high-level communications with the island.
In the years since, it has sent fighter jets and naval vessels into the air and waters around the island, encouraging Taiwan’s few remaining formal allies to switch allegiance.
After his victory, Lai said he hoped for a return to “healthy and orderly” exchanges with China, and reiterated his desire for talks based on dignity and equality.
While Lai won the election, the DPP lost its majority in the legislature, ending up with one seat less than the KMT. With neither having a majority, the Taiwan People’s Party, a relative newcomer that won eight of 113 seats, appears to be becoming increasingly influential in policymaking.
Following these results, China’s Taiwan Bureau said that “the Democratic Progressive Party cannot represent mainstream public opinion on the island,” according to Xinhua.
In response, Taiwan’s Foreign Ministry called on China to “respect the election results, face reality and give up its oppression against Taiwan.”
In recent months, the US and China have sought to rebuild ties that have been strained not only by Taiwan but also by a host of other issues, including the COVID-19 pandemic, trade and the emergence last year of an alleged Chinese spy balloon over US
The American Institute in Taiwan, the de facto U.S. embassy, said the U.S. government had asked Hadley and Steinberg “to travel to Taiwan in a personal capacity.”
Hadley said he looked forward to meeting Lai and other political leaders.
“We look forward to continuity in the relationship between Taiwan and the United States under the new administration, and to joint efforts to maintain cross-strait peace and stability.”
Taiwan’s government says Beijing has no right to speak for the island’s people or represent them on the world stage.
