Republican Nancy Mace was one of five US lawmakers to make a surprise day-long visit to Taiwan, the American Institute in Taiwan, the de facto embassy, announced.
Mic Smith / AP
hide captions
switch captions
Mic Smith / AP
Republican Nancy Mace was one of five US lawmakers to make a surprise day-long visit to Taiwan, the American Institute in Taiwan, the de facto embassy, announced.
Mic Smith / AP
TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) – Five U.S. lawmakers met with Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen Friday morning for a surprise day-long visit intended to reaffirm their “unwavering” support for Taiwan. United States for self-governing islands.
According to the American Institute in Taiwan, the embassy’s de facto, bipartisan group of lawmakers from the US House of Representatives arrived in Taiwan on Thursday night and planned to meet with senior leaders including Tsai. No further details were provided about their itinerary.
The visit comes as tensions between Taiwan and China have risen to their highest levels in decades. Taiwan has been self-governing since the two sides split in a civil war in 1949, but China considers the island part of its territory.
“When news of our trip leaked yesterday, my office received a blunt message from the Chinese Embassy, asking me to suspend the trip,” said Representative Elissa Slotkin , D-Mich, who joined the delegation, wrote on Twitter.
Representatives Mark Takano, D-Calif., Colin Allred, D-Texas., Sara Jacobs, D-Calif., and Nancy Mace, RS.C., were also part of the visiting delegation.
“We are here in Taiwan this week to remind our partners and allies, after two years of hard work that we have endured, that our shared commitment and responsibility is,” said Mr. Takano. We are stronger than ever for a free and secure Indo-Pacific.”
Takano added that the US relationship with Taiwan is “solid and remains strong as our relationship deepens.”
Tsai, who greeted legislators and AIT directors at the Presidential Office in Taipei, noted the two sides’ cooperation on veterans issues, economic and trade issues, and reminded The island’s close relationship with the United States.
“Taiwan will continue to strengthen cooperation with the United States to uphold our shared values of freedom and democracy and ensure peace and stability in the region,” Tsai said.
The visit is the third by US lawmakers to Taiwan this year and comes just weeks after a group of six Republican members of Congress visited the island. That delegation met with President Tsai, National Security Secretary General Wellington Koo and Secretary of State Joseph Wu, among others.
In June, three members of Congress flew to Taiwan to donate much-needed vaccines at a time when the island is struggling to get enough.
The Biden administration has also invited Taiwan to next month’s Summit for Democracy, a move that has drawn sharp criticism from China.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said on Wednesday, “What the US has done proves that so-called democracy is just an excuse and a tool for it to pursue geopolitical goals, oppress other countries, divide the world, serve their own interests, and maintain world hegemony.”
