Taiwanese President Lai Ching-toku will make a two-day U.S. port stop in Hawaii as part of his Pacific tour after declaring the democratically-governed island of Taiwan a vital force promoting peace and stability in the world. It started.
The visit infuriated China, which considers Taiwan its own territory and opposes foreign exchanges or visits by the island's leaders. China's Foreign Ministry announced on Sunday that it had filed a “serious protest” against the United States.
China has stepped up military pressure on Taiwan, holding two rounds of military exercises this year, and security sources told Reuters that Beijing would hold additional military exercises to coincide with Lai's tour. He said there are possibilities, including a stop in the U.S. territory of Guam.
This will be Yori's first overseas trip since taking office in May. After Hawaii, he went to the Marshall Islands, Tuvalu and Palau, three of the 12 countries that maintain formal diplomatic relations with Taipei and parts of the world where China has more influence. I'm planning to go.
“I would like to thank the U.S. government for upholding the principles of safety, dignity, comfort and convenience and helping to facilitate this trip,” Lai told reporters before departing.
Hawaii Gov. Josh Green said in a statement after Lai, Honolulu's mayor and the city's police chief greeted each other on the tarmac of Honolulu Airport on Saturday that the meeting was an “important opportunity” and emphasized resilience and resilience. He emphasized Hawaii's shared value of resilience. Collaboration with Taiwan.
Green added that he later invited Lai to an emergency management briefing to discuss responses to natural disasters.
Ingrid Larson, executive director of the Washington office of the Taiwan American Institute, which serves as the unofficial U.S. embassy in Taiwan, was also at the airport to greet Lai. Institute President Laura Rosenberger wrote in a post on X: “Ingrid Larson and the great community of Hawaii are thrilled to welcome you!”
Taiwan's state-run Central News Agency said the visit was warmer than any previous visit.
“President Lai's transit was his first time being welcomed at an airport, with a red carpet and a bouquet of flowers, which was different from previous terminal entry methods and treated with the highest level of courtesy ever. The proportion of recipients was also higher than previous standards,” the CNA said.
Asked about this, a US State Department spokesperson said: “This transit is civil, unofficial and within precedent.”
Lai was scheduled to visit the Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor later Saturday, CNA said. The memorial is the final resting place for some of those killed in the 1941 Japanese attack that drew the United States into World War II.
Hawaii and Guam are home to major US military bases.
China also said on Sunday that it would take “firm countermeasures” against the recently approved U.S. arms sale to Taiwan, complaining that the sale seriously violates China's sovereignty.
The US State Department has approved the potential sale of spare parts and support for F-16 fighter jets and radars to Taiwan, worth an estimated $385 million, the Pentagon said on Friday. Announced ahead of time.
The Taiwanese leader's visit comes as Republican U.S. President-elect Donald Trump prepares to take office in January. Taipei publicly congratulated him on his victory. During his campaign, Trump suggested that Taiwan should pay the United States for defense.
Taiwan's president often uses only official transit points to the United States to meet with friendly American politicians and give speeches. Such stopovers typically occur when visiting distant allies in the Pacific, Latin America, and the Caribbean.
“This visit marks the beginning of a new era of values-based diplomacy,” Lai said. “Democracy, prosperity and peace are the expectations of the Taiwanese people, and these are also the values that I must actively promote as president.”
The United States has only unofficial relations with Taiwan and has adopted a “one China” policy that recognizes China diplomatically, but the U.S. government is required by law to provide self-defense measures to Taiwan.
Taiwan's government rejects Beijing's claims of sovereignty and says it has the right to engage with the world and for its leaders to travel abroad.
Partnership with Reuters and Agence France-Presse
