United States: Taiwan’s President Ms. Tsai Ing-wen has met with United States House Speaker Mr. Kevin McCarthy in California in a historic visit that has already sparked condemnation from China.

The two leaders sat down together at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley.

Mr. McCarthy called the Taiwanese President “a great friend to America,” adding that “I am optimistic we will continue to find ways for the people of America and Taiwan to work together to promote economic freedom, democracy, peace, and stability.”

Ms. Tsai thanked McCarthy and the rest of the congressional delegation for their hospitality, saying, “I am so pleased.”

“Their presence and unwavering support reassure the people of Taiwan that we are not isolated and that we are not alone. We are stronger when we are together,” Taiwan’s President commented.

“It is no secret that today the peace that we have maintained and the democracy that we have worked hard to build are facing unprecedented challenges. We once again find ourselves in a world where democracy is under threat. And the urgency of keeping the beacon of freedom shining cannot be understated,” Ms. Tsai added.

US Secretary of State Mr. Antony Blinken has called Ms. Tsai’s visit “normal,” noting that she has made six similar stopovers in recent years.

“Beijing should not use the transit as an excuse to take any actions to ratchet up tensions, to further push it changing the status quo,” Mr. Blinken commented during a news conference in Brussels.

Beijing had recently criticised Tsai’s stopovers in the US as part of a visit to diplomatic allies Guatemala and Belize and swiftly condemned the meeting between Mr. McCarthy and Ms. Tsai, whom it frames as “separatists” bent on securing Taiwan independence.

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