China has pledged “resolute countermeasures” following the United States’ decision to approve more arms sales to Taiwan.
This came hours before the island’s President William Lai Ching-te made a transit through the state of Hawaii, which further angered Beijing.
In a statement on Sunday, December 1, 2024, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that the US arms sale to Taiwan sends “a wrong signal” to the island’s independence forces and undermines US-China relations.
It added, “China will closely follow the developments and take resolute and strong measures to defend our nation’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
The US is bound by law to provide Taiwan with the means to defend itself despite the lack of formal diplomatic ties between Washington and Taipei, to the constant anger of Beijing.
China views democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory and the most important issue in its relations with Washington.
However, Taiwan rejects China’s claims of sovereignty.
The US State Department had approved the potential sale, worth an estimated $385m, of spare parts and support for F-16 jets and radars to Taiwan, hours before Lai began his trip to three Pacific nations, with stops in Hawaii and the US territory of Guam.
China Slams US For Lai’s Stopover
In a separate statement issued by a Foreign Ministry spokesman on Sunday, China said that it “strongly condemned” the US for “arranging” Lai’s stopover, during which he was welcomed by Hawaii Governor Josh Green.
The statement added that it has “lodged serious protests with the US.”
The ministry added it firmly opposes any official exchanges between the US and Taiwan.
China strongly dislikes Lai, calling him a “separatist.”
During Lai’s transit in Hawaii, he visited the USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbour, during which he said the US and Taiwan should “fight together to prevent war.” “Peace is priceless, and war has no winners,” he said.
Looking relaxed in a Hawaiian shirt, Lai was given the “red carpet treatment” on the tarmac of Honolulu’s international airport, according to his office, which said it was the first time a Taiwanese president had been given such a welcome.
He was met by Governor Green as well as Ingrid Larson, Managing Director in Washington of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT).
Taiwan’s official Central News Agency said that the welcome exceeded those of past visits.
Hawaii Governor Josh Green said in a statement after he, the Mayor of Honolulu and the city’s police Chief greeted Lai on the tarmac of Honolulu airport, and that the meeting was a “momentous occasion,” highlighting Hawaii’s shared values of resilience and collaboration with Taiwan.
Green later hosted Lai for an emergency management briefing to discuss handling natural disasters.
In his first public speech of the weeklong trip, Lai said he was “grateful” to the US for “upholding the principles of safety, dignity, comfort and convenience for helping the smooth process of this trip.”
After Hawaii, Lai will visit Taiwan’s allies, the Marshall Islands, Tuvalu and Palau – the only Pacific island nations among the 12 countries that recognise Taiwan’s claim to statehood.
Taiwan’s Presidents often make use of what are officially only stopovers in the United States to meet friendly U.S. politicians and give speeches.
Such stopovers are typically on visits to far-flung allies in the Pacific, Latin America or the Caribbean.
READ ALSO: Musa Dankwah Defends Global InfoAnalytics Polls, Highlights Consistency in Results
