US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy has confirmed that he will meet with Tsai Ing-wen, the head of Taiwan (China), in California on April 5, The Guardian reported.
After meeting with the leaders of Guatemala and Belize, on her way back from Central America, Ms. Tsai plans to stop in the United States and will meet with Mr. McCarthy.
The bipartisan meeting will take place at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, just outside Los Angeles in California, McCarthy's office said on April 3.
The group of lawmakers who will attend the meeting includes Pete Aguilar, a member of the Democratic leadership, and leaders of a US House committee that handles China issues, according to a copy of the invitation list obtained by CNN.
The meeting between Tsai Ing-wen and McCarthy has been long anticipated and will certainly affect the already tense relationship between the US and China.
Ms. Tsai Ing-wen arrives at a hotel in New York, USA, March 30, 2023. Photo: The Hill
Beijing considers Taiwan part of its territory, and has said it will not rule out the use of force to unify it.
“China will take resolute measures to safeguard its sovereignty and territorial integrity,” China’s Foreign Ministry said on April 3, when asked how Beijing would react if US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy met with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen during her stopover in the US.
“China has repeatedly stressed that we firmly oppose any form of official contact between the US and Taiwan governments,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Mao Ning said at a daily press briefing on April 3.
“Relevant US lawmakers should abide by the one-China principle and the provisions of the three China-US joint communiques, and refrain from sending wrong signals to Taiwan separatist forces, so as not to harm China-US relations and peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait,” Mao said.
In an article on April 3, the Global Times, one of the mouthpieces of the Chinese Communist Party, quoted a Beijing-based expert as saying that a reaction from China could be seen after Tsai Ing-wen completely ended her activities in the US .
Minh Duc (According to CNN, The Guardian, Xinhua, Global Times)
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