WAHINGTON, July 29: The administration of US President Donald Trump barred Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te from stopping in New York during his planned August visit to Paraguay, Guatemala and Belize over China’s objections, the Financial Times newspaper reported on Monday, citing three sources.
Lai’s office said he had no immediate plans for overseas travel due to typhoon relief efforts and trade talks with Washington, though the sources reportedly indicated that the decision followed a US refusal to allow a New York stop.
The report said that Lai had intended to stop in Dallas, but it remains unclear whether the US blocked only the New York visit or barred his transit through the country entirely.
The White House did not respond to a request for comment, while Taiwan’s de facto embassy in Washington cited Lai’s statement that he had no immediate plans for foreign travel, the report read.
Several sources told the newspaper that the Trump administration aimed to avoid risking trade negotiations with China.
Official relations between mainland China and its island province broke down in 1949 after defeated Kuomintang forces led by Chiang Kai-shek fled to Taiwan after losing a civil war to the Chinese Communist Party. They resumed business and informal contacts in the late 1980s. Since the early 1990s, the two have maintained contacts through non-governmental organizations.
(UNI)
Follow our WhatsApp channel
