TAIWAN COMMITTED TO SAFEGUARD AGAINST ONGOING THREATS AND INTIMIDATION FROM CHINA: PRESIDENT LAI

Sun 14 January 2024:

After voters rejected Beijing’s warnings and selected pro-sovereignty candidate Lai Ching-te as president, Taiwan on Sunday called China to “face reality” and accept the outcome of the election.

Beijing’s repeated pleas for voters not to support Lai were met with a resounding victory for the man the country’s ruling Communist Party views as a dangerous separatist.

Lai, of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), had vowed to defend the island from China’s “intimidation” and on Sunday Taipei’s foreign ministry told Beijing to accept the result.

“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs calls on the Beijing authorities to respect the election results, face reality and give up suppressing Taiwan in order for positive cross-strait interactions to return to the right track,” it said in a statement.

An unofficial US delegation sent by President Joe Biden’s administration will arrive in Taipei on Sunday, a move sure to draw condemnation from Beijing.

The delegation, including a former US national security adviser and a former deputy secretary of state, will meet “a range of leading political figures” on Monday, the island’s de facto US embassy said in a statement.

China on Sunday condemned a statement by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken congratulating Lai on his win.

“We strongly deplore and firmly oppose this, and have made serious representations to the US side,” a foreign ministry spokesperson said.

In his victory speech, the 64-year-old Lai congratulated voters for refusing to be swayed by “external forces” trying to influence the election.

He said he wanted to cooperate with China — Taiwan’s biggest trade partner — and maintain peace and stability, but pledged not to be cowed by Chinese belligerence.

“We are determined to safeguard Taiwan from continuing threats and intimidation from China,” he told supporters.

Four Chinese naval vessels were seen in waters around the island on polling day, according to Taiwan’s defence ministry, and one high-altitude balloon passed over.

China warned Taiwan’s voters in the days leading up to the election to make the “correct choice”, saying that Lai would take the island closer to war.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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