China demands US end any official contacts with Taiwan after Congress visit

Washington: China on Thursday reacted strongly to the visit of a US congressional delegation to Taiwan, demanding that the US stop any official contacts with the self-ruled island.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Mao Ning said, “China opposes any official dialogue between US and Taiwan officials and rejects US interference in Taiwan’s affairs in any form or under any pretext.” He urged Washington to be “mindful of the extreme complexity and sensitivity” of the Taiwan issue.

Mao spoke shortly after leaders of the Communist Party of China’s House Select Committee met with Taiwan’s leaders on a high-profile visit aimed at showing US support for the island’s democratically elected government.

The Congress visit received a stronger response than usual. Beijing has long opposed any official talks between the US and Taiwan, but is particularly dissatisfied with the House Select Committee, which was set up in 2023 and is known for its hardline views of China’s ruling party. Known for.

However, the visit is unlikely to trigger major military actions, as was then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit in the summer of 2022. Beijing and Washington are trying to stabilize their rocky relations after a meeting in November between US President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping. ,

The congressional visit coincided with the US State Department’s announcement of a $75 million arms sale to Taiwan. The sale is relatively small in size and does not include weapons. Instead, it includes communications and global positioning systems as well as related technology.

Mao criticized the sale, saying it was “undermining China’s sovereignty and security interests and harming Sino-US relations and peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.”

The US is obliged under a 1979 law to provide Taiwan with sufficient military hardware and technology to deter invasion, and its arms sales to Taiwan have always drawn strong opposition from Beijing, which views the island as part of Chinese territory and Vows to take it. By force if necessary.

Taiwan is also part of a $95 billion aid package that passed the Senate this month but is stalled in the House. That package, which focused on Ukraine and Israel, included $1.9 billion to compensate for US arms provided to Taiwan. An additional $3.3 billion will be spent to build more American-made submarines in support of security partnerships with Australia and the United Kingdom.

In Taiwan, the Republican chairman of the select committee, Rep. The transfer, according to a report from the Central News Agency, the island’s main wire service.

The delegation also met with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen and newly elected President Lai Ching-te. Lai, who won a three-way race in January, will take office in May.

Gallagher said during the meeting with Tsai, “Today, we have come together as Democrats and Republicans to show our bipartisan support for this partnership, which, thanks to your leadership, I think is stronger and stronger than ever.” Is more solid.”

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AP Diplomat writer Matthew Lee contributed to this report

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