AP’s HONOLULU As part of a Pacific island trip that has already drawn condemnation from Beijing, Taiwan’s president, Li Ching-te, met with the governor and congressional representatives of the state during a two-day visit to Hawaii.
China’s Foreign Ministry stated on Sunday that it had filed a complaint with the United States and that it strongly criticized the U.S. backing for Lai’s travel. Additionally, it condemned a recently disclosed arms deal between the United States and Taiwan, an autonomous island that China asserts is its own.
According to the statement, China will keep a careful eye on the situation’s evolution and take decisive action to protect its territorial integrity and sovereignty.
Lai’s weeklong journey, which would also include stops in the Marshall Islands, Tuvalu, and Palau, began in Hawaii. They make up three of the twelve nations with whom Taipei has official diplomatic ties.
Gov. Josh Greenon of Hawaii Lai was hosted to the state’s emergency management agency on Saturday, where they talked about catastrophe readiness. Prior to becoming governor, Green worked as an emergency room doctor for many years. He shared on social media that he and Lai talked about how their backgrounds in medicine influenced their governance. Lai holds a Master of Public Health degree from Harvard University and is a medical professional by training.
We all gave Lai and his delegation a heartfelt “aoha,” emphasizing Hawai’s common ideals of cooperation and resiliency with Taiwan, Green wrote on Instagram.
Lai also went to Bishop Museum, which is the premier museum of Native Hawaiian culture and natural history in Hawaii.
During a dinner banquet with the Taiwanese American community in the evening, Lai posed for pictures with state and federal lawmakers from Hawaii.
On social media, U.S. Representative Ed Case, a Democrat who serves as the representative for Honolulu in Congress, stated that he informed the audience that our relationships have persisted because of our common values and interests, which have helped us achieve our objectives and overcome our common difficulties.
During his visit to Hawaii, it is unknown if Lai will meet with any high-ranking officials from the Biden or incoming Trump administrations.
In a July interview with Bloomberg, President-elect Donald Trump stated that Taiwan should foot the bill for its military. The U.S. has sold the island defense weapons worth billions of dollars.
Trump avoided answering the question of whether he would protect the island from military attack by China.
The U.S. State Department disclosed additional weapons on Friday, including $385 million for equipment and spare parts for an F-16 fleet and assistance for a tactical communication system to Taiwan.
Under the Taiwan Relations Act, the United States is required to assist the island in defending itself, but it remains strategically neutral about whether it would ever intervene in the event that China invaded Taiwan.
When former Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen landed in New York last year while traveling to Latin America, she garnered strong criticism from China. At the time, Tsai had a meeting with Kevin McCarthy, the former Speaker of the House.
Days after Lai, Taiwan’s vice president at the time, halted in the United States, the Chinese military also conducted drills surrounding Taiwan last year as a severe warning over what it described as coordination between rebels and foreign forces.
Leading American politicians visiting the island is also vehemently opposed by China, which sees any formal interaction between other governments and Taiwan as a violation of its sovereignty claims. In 1979, Washington officially recognized Beijing instead of Taipei.
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