A person familiar with the trip’s planning said Lai will join receptions with overseas Taiwanese during the stopover in New York, during which he will make a speech.
He will not meet US politicians, the person said, adding Lai will keep the visit “low key”, in line with Taipei and Washington’s shared position to “jointly manage risks when facing an authoritarian region at this sensitive time”.
Lai, greeted by supporters waving flags as he arrived at his New York hotel, wrote on social media platform X he was “looking forward to seeing friends and attending transit programs in New York”.
Laura Rosenberger, chair of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT), a US government-run non-profit that carries out unofficial relations with Taiwan, said on X that she would meet Lai in San Francisco, where he is due on Wednesday on his way home.
China is likely to launch military drills this week near Taiwan, using Lai’s US stopovers as a pretext to intimidate voters ahead of a next year’s election and make them “fear war”, Taiwanese officials say.
Wang Yi regained his position as China’s foreign minister earlier this year.Credit: Pool
Lai’s transits come as Beijing and Washington are trying to improve relations.
That includes the prospect of a visit to the US by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, which could pave the way for a meeting between US President Joe Biden and China’s leader Xi Jinping this year.
China has stepped up its military activities around Taiwan over the past three years, seeking to force the island into accepting Beijing’s sovereignty.
In April, China staged war games around Taiwan in an angry response to Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen meeting US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in California on a stopover on the way back to Taipei following her visit to Central America.
Reuters
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