US lawmakers visit Taiwan in show of support
TAIPEI, Taiwan — A group of United States Congress members met with Taiwan’s president Thursday in a show of bipartisan support that is certain to draw scrutiny from China, which opposes such visits and sees them as a challenge to its claim of sovereignty over the self-governing island.
Two years ago, a visit by then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan resulted in China dispatching warships and military aircraft to all sides of the democratic island, and firing ballistic missiles into the waters nearby.
In a meeting Thursday with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen, Rep. Mike Gallagher, the Republican chair of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, highlighted the bipartisan support for the U.S.Taiwan partnership, which he described as “stronger and more rock-solid than ever now.”
The U.S. doesn’t formally recognize Taiwan as a country but maintains robust informal relations with the island and is bound by its own laws to provide it with the weapons it needs to defend itself.
Gallagher thanked Tsai, who is nearing the end of her last term in office, for her leadership in Taiwan and for distinguishing herself “as a leader within the free world.”
Tsai thanked the U.S. for continuing to help Taiwan strengthen its selfdefense capabilities.
“Together we are safeguarding freedom and democracy and maintaining regional peace,” she said
In Beijing, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said China opposes any form of official exchange between the U.S. and Taiwan. “Taiwan is an inalienable part of Chinese territory,” she said.
The delegation, led by Gallagher, R-Wis., and Raja Krishnamoorthi, D.-Ill., was expected to be in Taiwan for three days as part of a larger visit to the Indo-Pacific region. Other members include Reps. John Moolenaar, R-Mich.; Dusty Johnson, R-S.D.; and Seth Moulton, D-Mass.
Consisting of some of Congress’ staunchest critics of China, the delegation was to meet with other senior Taiwanese leaders and members of civil society to discuss U.S.-Taiwan relations, regional security and trade, among other issues of mutual interest.
Krishnamoorthi said Taiwan is one of the United States’ “closest friends” and a role model for democracy, after Lai Ching-te emerged victorious as Taiwan’s presidentelect and vowed to safeguard the island’s de facto independence from China and further align it with other democracies.