BEIJING - China’s defence ministry says it has urged the United States to refrain from sending any wrong signals to the forces of “Taiwan independence”.
It was responding on Thursday to questions about an upcoming visit by Taiwan President Lai Ching-te to the United States.
China’s military will “resolutely defeat all secessionist attempts” and thwart all interference by external forces, ministry spokesperson Wu Qian told a news conference in Beijing.
Lai will stop over in Hawaii and the US territory of Guam during a trip to three Pacific island nations, the Presidential Office in Taipei said on Thursday.
The announcement sparked fury in Beijing, which insists Taiwan is part of its territory and opposes any international recognition of the island.
Lai will depart on Saturday for a visit to the Marshall Islands, Tuvalu and Palau — the only Pacific islands among Taiwan’s 12 remaining allies.
It will be his first overseas trip since taking office in May.
Taiwanese government officials have previously stopped over on US soil during visits to the Pacific or Latin America, angering Chinese leaders in Beijing.
Lai will spend two nights in Hawaii and one night in Guam, meeting with “old friends” and “think tank members”, a source in the Presidential Office said on the condition of anonymity.
Communist China, which has never governed democratic self-ruled Taiwan, has sought to erase Taiwan from the international stage, blocking it from global forums and pressuring companies to list the island as a “Chinese province” on their websites.
Taiwan competes as Chinese Taipei in international sports events and Beijing bristles when Taipei officials meet with any foreign politicians or government representatives.
Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said on Thursday that Lai’s planned visits were “separatist actions”.
“We have consistently opposed official exchanges between the United States and Taiwan … and any form of the US condoning and supporting Taiwan independence separatists and their separatist actions,” she said.
In recent decades, Taiwan has haemorrhaged allies as they jumped ship to an ascendant China, which has deeper pockets to provide aid and investment.
The United States is Taiwan’s most important partner and main security backer but does not recognise Taipei diplomatically.
Lai’s predecessor Tsai Ing-wen also transited through Hawaii and Guam during her first official visit to Pacific allies in 2017.
Tsai met then-US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in California in April 2023 during a Latin America trip, to which Beijing responded with military drills around the island.
Tensions between China and Taiwan have escalated since Lai took office in May.
Lai and Tsai both belong to the Democratic Progressive Party, but Lai has been more outspoken in his defence of the island’s sovereignty and Beijing calls him a “separatist”.
The dispute between Beijing and Taipei dates back to 1949 when Chiang Kai-shek’s nationalist forces lost a civil war to Mao Zedong’s communist fighters and fled to Taiwan.
China has refused to rule out the use of force to seize Taiwan and in recent years has ramped up military activity around the island to pressure Taipei into accepting its claims of sovereignty.
It was responding on Thursday to questions about an upcoming visit by Taiwan President Lai Ching-te to the United States.
China’s military will “resolutely defeat all secessionist attempts” and thwart all interference by external forces, ministry spokesperson Wu Qian told a news conference in Beijing.
Lai will stop over in Hawaii and the US territory of Guam during a trip to three Pacific island nations, the Presidential Office in Taipei said on Thursday.
The announcement sparked fury in Beijing, which insists Taiwan is part of its territory and opposes any international recognition of the island.
Lai will depart on Saturday for a visit to the Marshall Islands, Tuvalu and Palau — the only Pacific islands among Taiwan’s 12 remaining allies.
It will be his first overseas trip since taking office in May.
Taiwanese government officials have previously stopped over on US soil during visits to the Pacific or Latin America, angering Chinese leaders in Beijing.
Lai will spend two nights in Hawaii and one night in Guam, meeting with “old friends” and “think tank members”, a source in the Presidential Office said on the condition of anonymity.
Communist China, which has never governed democratic self-ruled Taiwan, has sought to erase Taiwan from the international stage, blocking it from global forums and pressuring companies to list the island as a “Chinese province” on their websites.
Taiwan competes as Chinese Taipei in international sports events and Beijing bristles when Taipei officials meet with any foreign politicians or government representatives.
Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said on Thursday that Lai’s planned visits were “separatist actions”.
“We have consistently opposed official exchanges between the United States and Taiwan … and any form of the US condoning and supporting Taiwan independence separatists and their separatist actions,” she said.
In recent decades, Taiwan has haemorrhaged allies as they jumped ship to an ascendant China, which has deeper pockets to provide aid and investment.
The United States is Taiwan’s most important partner and main security backer but does not recognise Taipei diplomatically.
Lai’s predecessor Tsai Ing-wen also transited through Hawaii and Guam during her first official visit to Pacific allies in 2017.
Tsai met then-US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in California in April 2023 during a Latin America trip, to which Beijing responded with military drills around the island.
Tensions between China and Taiwan have escalated since Lai took office in May.
Lai and Tsai both belong to the Democratic Progressive Party, but Lai has been more outspoken in his defence of the island’s sovereignty and Beijing calls him a “separatist”.
The dispute between Beijing and Taipei dates back to 1949 when Chiang Kai-shek’s nationalist forces lost a civil war to Mao Zedong’s communist fighters and fled to Taiwan.
China has refused to rule out the use of force to seize Taiwan and in recent years has ramped up military activity around the island to pressure Taipei into accepting its claims of sovereignty.
