Taiwan’s president receives “red carpet” in US, China reacts

Honolulu, United States:

Taiwan President Lai Ching-te was feted with a red carpet, flower garlands and “alohas” as he kicked off his two-day stopover in Hawaii on Saturday, part of a Pacific tour that has drawn heated rhetoric from Beijing.

China claims Taiwan as part of its territory and responded to Lai’s first foreign trip as president with threats to “resolutely crush” any attempt at independence.

Looking relaxed in a Hawaiian shirt, Lai flew around the US island nation, visiting a Pacific island history museum, an emergency management center and the USS Arizona Memorial in Pearl Harbor.

Earlier, he was given the “red carpet treatment” on the tarmac at Honolulu International Airport, according to his office, which said it was the first time a Taiwanese president had been given such a reception.

He was met by Ingrid Larson, Washington director general of the American Taiwan Institute, Hawaii Governor Josh Green and others.

At each step, Lai was offered garlands of brightly colored flowers or leaves known as lei, greetings of “aloha” and other Hawaiian gifts.

In the evening, Lai is expected to give his first public speech of the week-long trip at a dinner attended by American government officials and Taiwanese living abroad.

Beijing opposes any international recognition of Taiwan and its claim to be a sovereign state, and especially frowns upon official contact between the island and the United States.

Like most countries, Washington does not recognize Taiwan diplomatically, but it is its most important supporter and largest arms supplier.

In a statement, China’s Foreign Ministry said it “firmly condemns” the United States for Lai’s stopover and has “submitted serious protests to the US.”

“China will closely monitor developments and take resolute and strong measures to defend our nation’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” the statement said.

After Hawaii, Lai will visit Taiwan’s allies the Marshall Islands, Tuvalu and Palau — the only Pacific island nations among the 12 countries that recognize Taiwan’s claim to statehood — and stop overnight in the US territory of Guam.

Lai said shortly before take-off in Taipei that the trip “inaugurated a new era of values-based democracy” and thanked the US government for “helping make this trip a smooth one”.

He said he wanted to “continue to expand cooperation and deepen partnerships with our allies based on the values ​​of democracy, peace and prosperity.”

“I emphasize once again that we are all Team Taiwan. We all work together and can successfully achieve our goals,” Lai told reporters on board the plane.

An AFP journalist is traveling with the president throughout the trip.

Threat of invasion

Taiwan lives under the constant threat of an invasion by China, which has refused to rule out the use of force to bring the island under its control.

Beijing deploys fighter jets, drones and warships around Taiwan almost daily to support its claims, with the number of sorties increasing in recent years.

Lai’s aircraft was escorted by Taiwanese Air Force F-16 fighter jets for part of its route to Hawaii.

“I think this is very significant and also makes us feel that we have a long way to go in this journey and that we are taking on heavy responsibilities,” Lai told reporters on board, referring to the escort.

Taiwanese government officials have previously stopped on US soil during visits to the Pacific or Latin America, angering China, which has sometimes responded with military exercises around the island.

In a quick response to news of Lai’s trip on Thursday, Wu Qian, a spokesman for China’s defense ministry, said: “We firmly oppose official interaction with China’s Taiwan region in any form” and vowed to ” we resolutely crush” any attempt to achieve Taiwan independence.

Lai’s trip follows the US’s approval on Friday of a proposed sale to Taiwan of spare parts for F-16s and radar systems, as well as communications equipment, in deals valued at a total of $385 million.

The president’s trip to Taiwan comes as Republican US President-elect Donald Trump prepares to take office in January.

Taipei publicly congratulated Trump on his victory, joining other governments around the world in trying to come to terms with the mercurial tycoon, whose diplomatic style is often transactional.

During his campaign, Trump caused jitters by suggesting that Taiwan should pay the US for its defense.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)