TAOYUAN, Taiwan (Reuters) – The head of Taiwan's delegation to Donald Trump's inauguration as US president next week said he will go there to offer the island's “highest blessings” to the United States.
Taiwan, which China considers its own territory, enjoyed strong support from the first Trump administration, including regulation of arms sales that continued under President Joe Biden. But Trump worried Taiwan during his election campaign when he called on it to pay the price for its defense.
Taiwan Parliament Speaker Han Kuo-yu, a senior member of the opposition Kuomintang party who unsuccessfully ran for president in 2020, said at Taoyuan airport before departing for Washington that many foreign leaders were also on their way even with the threat of heavy snow.
“Likewise, all members of our delegation bring this enthusiasm to the United States to represent our 23 million people, and we extend our highest blessings to the US presidential team and to the people of the United States.”
Han is accompanied by a cross-party delegation that includes seven other lawmakers.
The Chinese delegation is led by Vice President Han Zheng, and Chinese President Xi Jinping spoke by phone with Trump on Friday and they discussed issues including Taiwan.
Han's party traditionally favors close relations and dialogue with China, but denies its support for Beijing.
The United States, like most countries, does not have formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan, but is obligated by law to provide the island with the means to defend itself.
China has intensified its military pressure on Taiwan over the past five years and refuses to talk to President Lai Ching-te, describing him as a “separatist.” He rejects China's claims to sovereignty, and China has rejected his offers for talks.
Lai, who met late Friday with Mike Pence, Trump's vice president in his first administration, said that in light of China's threats against Taiwan and Beijing's rapprochement with countries like Russia, democracies need to work together.
“I believe that as the partnership between Taiwan and the United States becomes stronger, the ability to maintain peace and stability in the world will also become stronger,” Lai told Pence.
