On Monday, a delegation from the US Congress met with Taiwan’s new president, Lai Ching-te, shortly after China conducted exercises around the autonomous island in response to his inauguration speech.
Republican Chairman of the US House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee, Michael McCaul, said on Monday that he had a realistic conversation with Taiwan’s new president about the threats facing the island.
McCaul added in a press conference that the US Congress “strongly supports Taiwan and hopes that matters will not escalate” regarding the island claimed by China, according to Reuters.
He added that the weapons requested by Taiwan were finally on their way, and that the “terrorist” war exercises conducted by China last week highlighted the need to strengthen the island’s deterrence capabilities.
He said Taiwan needed to have enough weapons to show Chinese President Xi Jinping that the risk of invading the island outweighs the benefits.
For his part, Republican Representative in the US House of Representatives, Andy Barr, said, “The United States is fully committed to supporting Taiwan militarily, diplomatically, and economically,” according to the Associated Press.
He added: “There should be no doubt… about America’s determination to maintain the status quo and peace in the Taiwan Strait.”
For his part, Taiwan’s new Foreign Minister, Lin Chia-lung, referred to the recent Chinese exercises, and described the American delegation’s visit as an “important gesture of solidarity” at a critical time.
Last week, Lai, whom Beijing described as a “dangerous separatist,” was sworn in as the new president of the autonomous island that China considers an integral part of it.
Over the past four years, China has carried out repeated military activities around Taiwan as it seeks to pressure the island’s government.
Communication between China and Taiwan has been cut off since 2016 after the former Taiwanese president, Tsai Ing-wen, took power, pledging to defend Taiwan’s sovereignty.
Lai, who like Tsai belongs to the Democratic Progressive Party, pledged to maintain its policies based on strengthening Taiwan’s defenses while opening up to dialogue with China and strengthening relations with the island’s partners, especially the United States.
China considered Lai’s speech at his inauguration ceremony, last week, as a “recognition of the independence” of the island, “which pushes our citizens in Taiwan towards a situation of war and danger.”
The Chinese army then cordoned off Taiwan with military ships and aircraft during these maneuvers, vowing to “shed blood” on what it described as “independence forces” on the island.
On Saturday, China announced the end of the large-scale military maneuvers it had been conducting since Thursday around Taiwan, which included a hardening of Beijing’s tone towards Taipei that amounted to threats of “war.”
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