US Announces Delegation to Taiwan as Pro-Independence Candidate Wins Regional Elections
Taipei 101 at night from a moutain view (Taiwan)
MOSCOW (Sputnik) – US House Speaker Mike Johnson said on Saturday that a delegation of US lawmakers was planning to visit Taiwan in May to show Washington’s solidarity with the island following the elections. “To underscore the ongoing commitment of Congress to security and democracy, I will be asking the chairs of the relevant House Committees to lead a delegation to Taipei following Lai’s inauguration in May,” Johnson said on X. The US leadership intends to work with the new regional head, Johnson said, expressing his hope that Taiwan and the United States would “continue promoting the principles of liberty, opportunity and security” for the benefit of all democratic countries and their partners in the Indo-Pacific region.Johnson’s statement came barely a couple of hours after Joe Biden said, “We do not support independence” for Taiwan upon leaving Camp David. Biden’s statements reinforced the administration’s official position on Taiwan as after Lai Ching-te, the candidate from the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), was named the winner of the regional leader’s election after securing 40.05% of the vote, with ballots from 17,759 polling stations out of 17,795 counted. The DPP itself, however, lost 11 parliamentary seats as a result of the elections.The European Union welcomes the elections held in Taiwan, but is still concerned over rising tensions in the region and keeps opposing any unilateral attempts to change the status quo, the European External Action Service (EEAS) said on Saturday.”The European Union welcomes the elections held in Taiwan on 13 January, and congratulates all the voters who participated in this democratic exercise,” the EEAS said in a statement, adding, however, that “the EU remains concerned about growing tensions in the Taiwan Strait and opposes any unilateral attempt to change the status quo.”Peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait are important not only for the region, but for the world as a whole, the statement read.
AsiaChina to Firmly Oppose Actions Aimed at Promoting Taiwan’s Independence15:57 GMTMoscow, in turn, urges “external forces” to refrain from any provocations that could undermine stability and international security in the Taiwan Strait amid the regional elections, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.”We urge all external forces to refrain from provocative actions that undermine regional stability and international security,” Zakharova said in a statement.All attempts by certain countries to put pressure on Beijing are “counterproductive” and “deserve condemnation,” the spokeswoman added.Russia’s stance on the Taiwan issue remains unchanged, as Moscow continues to consider the island a part of China and opposes its independence in any form, Zakharova also recalled.
