Taiwan's president stays "low-key" during U.S. visit while China pressures Taiwan amid leader's diplomatic actions
차이잉원 방미 '신중' vs 마잉주 방중 '요란' 행보 중국, 차이잉원 방미에 압박 계속
The ongoing trips to Taiwan's current and former presidents to different parts of the world --the U.S. and China --set off a new round of challenges.
Lee Rae-hyun has more.
The ongoing overseas trips of current and most recent former presidents of Taiwan have been approached in different ways.
The current leader Tsai Ing-wen is in the U.S. but has largely kept herself out of the public eye.
Her stopover which began Wednesday in New York came at a time of heightened tensions with China and with a cautious atmosphere surrounding her presence in the U.S.
However, former president Ma Ying-jeou's arrival in China has reportedly been given head-of-state-level security as it's the first time a former or current Taiwanese president has visited mainland China in 74 years.
He was also reportedly met on arrival on Monday by a deputy director of China’s Taiwan affairs office.
He then visited the Sun Yat-sen mausoleum in Nanjing calling people on both sides of the Taiwan strait "Chinese people."
"As a Chinese, no matter which side of the Taiwan Strait you are on, you need to be self-reliant. In the event of a foreign invasion, we must face such a challenge bravely."
The Wall Street Journal reported that China's "red-carpet welcome" shows Beijing's intentions to have positive public sentiment in Taiwan by purposely accepting the former president's visit during Tsai's stopover in the U.S.
Also with Taiwan's presidential election coming up next January China is doing its best to get the Kuomintang or the Nationalist Party to take power.
However, despite the low-key approach and a willingness to avoid any unnecessary conflict during her stopover, President Tsai is working on diplomatic tasks such as urging Washington's support in politics, the military, and the economy.
She's reportedly aiming to discuss the elimination of double taxation for Taiwan's biggest foundry producer TSMC.
President Tsai also plans to meet Kevin McCarthy, speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives in April, too.
Responding to China's warning of retaliation if President Tsai meets the U.S. House Speaker, Washington says there is "absolutely no reason for China to overreact to this longstanding, routine practice."
Meanwhile, amid her visit to the U.S., China continues to pressure Taiwan.
Taiwan's defense ministry on Friday says that two military jets and three warships from the Chinese army were spotted in Taiwanese jurisdiction during the last 24 hours.
The Taiwanese military said it had responded by sending off its fighter jets and operating an air defense missile system while closely monitoring the warships' movements.
Lee Rae-hyun, Arirang News.
#Taiwan #Diplomacy #미국 #중국 #Arirang_News
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2023-03-31, 21:00 (KST)
