China vows 'forceful' response over Taiwan VP's U.S. visit

labeling Lai a "downright troublemaker".

Unitary Marxist–Leninist one-party authoritarian governments are quite cute when they are angry.

China, shut up!

The Communists can shut their mouths.

They have ZERO control of where citizens of free Taiwan can visit.

What are you gonna do about it, China? Gutless wonders.

Freedom for Taiwan. Fabulous people and the real Chinese culture.

Every time the CCP opens its big mouth it just shows what hypocrites they are...

Each day we hear some Chinese spokesperson ranting about the West "interfering in China's internal affairs"....

Yet when the US invites a foreign guest for an internal US visit, they flip and wet their pants...

Go buy a big fuzzy Winnie the Pooh doll at Disneyland VP Lai - and send it COD to Xi as a present when you get back...

Typical China. Military and diplomatic saber-rattling, all because an elected official got on a plane.

Xi stomps up and down like a child when he doesn't get his own way... but the big difference is that a child will learn and grow out of it. Xi won't.

Freedom for Taiwan. Fabulous people and the real Chinese culture.

Agree - but modern Taiwanese people see themselves as Taiwanese. Not Chinese.

"resolute and forceful measures" Bring it on China.

Tiered of your threats. So is the world.

Fighto. The best comment ever.

Taiwan has the right to be its own sovereign Nation.

China needs to back off.

people can delude themselves but the UN does not recognize Taiwan as a country

Well, it is about time UN does recognize Taiwan as a sovereign country!

The CCP expresses disappointment with anything that doesn't agree with their twisted thinking that they own Taiwan. Perhaps their old policy of one child per family has created a society of spoiled brat men who cry when they don't get what they want? It seems as such, based on their discourse regarding Lai's transit in the US. China doesn't complain when Taiwanese, Japanese and Korean tourists use a cheap Chinese airline and transit thru China on their way to more enjoyable countries.

He qualifies for a transit visa. It is a free country. China should respect that.

China has been told millions of times how foolish these tantrums make them appear to the world, yet they keep doing it? It is a joke at this point. Xi needs to be worried more about the epic flooding which is a "sign from god" to normal Chinese that the CCP leaders and hopefully the entire CCP, need to be replaced.

China vows 'forceful' response over Taiwan VP's U.S. visit

So, invite the lieutenant Governor of Puerto Rico to China? Reciprocity if they believe Taiwan is just a province of China. Anything more is not proportional and is aggressive.

konjo4uToday  09:09 pm JST

He qualifies for a transit visa. It is a free country. China should respect that.

China does not respect freedom.

This is not the guy the US wants is the talk in Taiwan. As for why, people have their opinions.

Lai is “behaving himself.” No public meetings with US officials, very low key. In fact, I don’t think that Lai has mentioned the word independence although he still uses “country” rather than “side” and talks about “China” rather than “Mainland.”

If this is the “real Lai Ching-Te” it means much less likely that a crisis will happen. Basically you need to turn two keys in order to start war and to blow up the world. Taiwan has to push for independence, and Washington has to agree.

Under Chen Shui-Bian you had a President who was pro-independence, but Washington said no. Under Trump you had the opposite situation. Pompeo was clearly interested in advocating Taiwanese independence, but Tsai Ying-Wen was not interested and has kept the status quo, which is what the majority on the island wants to the U.S.'s dismay.

If Lai was really the “independence fighter” and Trump and Pompeo are both in the Executive Branch, then we will be close or closer to war. If Lai is more level headed like Tsai, then he can at least slow things down.

Now you never know, it could be that Lai is really pro-independence and playing the long game, but even the fact that he is playing the long game means that you won’t have an immediate crisis. This is why he may not be the guy Washington wants. The US will become bored with the Taiwan issue. Give it another 2-3 years and it will blow away like the Uighurs in Xinjiang, Free Tibet, Hong Kong Independence, the Spy Balloon and so on.

The Taiwanese and the Chinese in Taiwan do not want war. Neither does China. For this reason, there will no be war. The US will move on to using Myanmar or Mongolia or the Philippines to start war with China because Taiwan won't be able to deliver.

labeling Lai a "downright troublemaker"

In China anyone who is educated is a troublemaker.

Beijing is in fact more in tune with Taiwan public opinion than most people think. What you get here is just minimal but enough. Taiwanese VP visits U.S. Beijing upset. That's it.

The counter chess move that Beijing has made is clever. While Lai has gone to the US, the pro-Beijing candidates have also made recent trips, and that has eaten up the news cycle in Taiwan. The message that Beijing is making is that Beijing really objects to a Taiwan separatist visiting the US, but presumably if a non-separatist visits the US, then there will be no problem.

On landing in New York on Sunday, Lai said on Twitter, now rebranded as X: "Happy to arrive at the Big Apple, icon of liberty, democracy and opportunities," adding that he was greeted at the airport by representatives of the American Institute in Taiwan, the United States's de facto embassy for the island.

The other point worth mentioning is that the head of the de-facto US embassy AIT, Laura Rosenberger, will not be meeting Lai publicly, and it is significant that no US officials are scheduled to publicly meet Lai. Of course, who knows what private meetings there are, but public meetings send signals.

This is significant because there are dozens of Senators and Representatives who would love to meet Lai, and if no member of Congress meets Lai this means that Lai is specifically asking for no meetings and is sending a message to Beijing that he can be trusted. I would also add that Beijing is too smart t to be played by Lai; first get elected then raise taxes; first get elected then become pro-independence.

"The Republic of China and PRC are not subordinate to each other," he said, using Taiwan's official name.

Its Taiwans official name ?

Or the political parties official name ?

Well, it is about time UN does recognize Taiwan as a sovereign country!

It would help if Taiwan officially declared independence otherwise how can the UN recognize it

Agree - but modern Taiwanese people see themselves as Taiwanese. Not Chinese.

That's not entirely true

I was recently living with a Taiwanese person who told me they were all Chinese.

I was recently living with a Taiwanese person who told me they were all Chinese.

In my experience this is true. I have never known a Taiwanese person who didn't say they were ethnically Chinese. Taiwanese people don't have a problem with their culture, their problem is with the CCP. Who do not represent Chinese people by the way, they only represent the CCP.

quercetumAug. 13 10:55 pm JST

Basically you need to turn two keys in order to start war and to blow up the world. Taiwan has to push for independence, and Washington has to agree.

No Peking is perfectly capable of deciding it is go time and manufacturing a reason like Russia did in Ukraine. Or even just going in without a reason and saying it is just the continuation of an 75 year old war.

Under Chen Shui-Bian you had a President who was pro-independence, but Washington said no. Under Trump you had the opposite situation. Pompeo was clearly interested in advocating Taiwanese independence, but Tsai Ying-Wen was not interested and has kept the status quo, which is what the majority on the island wants to the U.S.'s dismay.

Sounds like propaganda to me. Taiwan is understandably scared to declare independence because of the 1.4 billion pound gorilla standing next to them.

If Lai was really the “independence fighter” and Trump and Pompeo are both in the Executive Branch, then we will be close or closer to war. If Lai is more level headed like Tsai, then he can at least slow things down.

The US will become bored with the Taiwan issue. Give it another 2-3 years and it will blow away like the Uighurs in Xinjiang, Free Tibet, Hong Kong Independence, the Spy Balloon and so on.

Has the US become bored with the Taiwan issue in the past 75 years? Unlike the others there is a clear military solution: sending more gear to Taiwan or building our own capability in the reason.

The Taiwanese and the Chinese in Taiwan do not want war. Neither does China. For this reason, there will no be war.

Unfortunately there is no democracy in the mainland. Emperor Xi or even the PLA can decide they need a war despite what the public thinks.

The US will move on to using Myanmar or Mongolia or the Philippines to start war with China because Taiwan won't be able to deliver.

Nonsense. The only war potential among the three you listed is if China keeps infringing on the basic territorial rights of the Philippines.

quercetumAug. 13 11:22 pm JST

Beijing is in fact more in tune with Taiwan public opinion than most people think. What you get here is just minimal but enough. Taiwanese VP visits U.S. Beijing upset. That's it.

Oh, so Peking knows more about Taiwan than actual surveys conducted in Taiwan? Unlikely.

The counter chess move that Beijing has made is clever. While Lai has gone to the US, the pro-Beijing candidates have also made recent trips, and that has eaten up the news cycle in Taiwan. The message that Beijing is making is that Beijing really objects to a Taiwan separatist visiting the US, but presumably if a non-separatist visits the US, then there will be no problem.

Well, yes, they would like Taiwan to be as subservient as possible so they are distracted from what Beijing is doing. I think unfortunately even the KMT will sign on to weapons deals once they are power.

The other point worth mentioning is that the head of the de-facto US embassy AIT, Laura Rosenberger, will not be meeting Lai publicly, and it is significant that no US officials are scheduled to publicly meet Lai. Of course, who knows what private meetings there are, but public meetings send signals.

This is significant because there are dozens of Senators and Representatives who would love to meet Lai, and if no member of Congress meets Lai this means that Lai is specifically asking for no meetings and is sending a message to Beijing that he can be trusted.

It's a small concession easily reversed. If Taiwan or the US is in a better position to sink the Chinese fishing navy, you could well see official contacts increase.

I would also add that Beijing is too smart t to be played by Lai; first get elected then raise taxes; first get elected then become pro-independence.

They weren't smart enough to prevent the deflation crisis China is in, so not wagering anything on how smart they are on any other issue.

Its Taiwans official name ?

Or the political parties official name ?

That is Taiwan’s official name. It’s on their passport. They have only added Taiwan a few years ago so it’s Republic of China Taiwan.

Agree - but modern Taiwanese people see themselves as Taiwanese. Not Chinese.

That's not entirely true

I was recently living with a Taiwanese person who told me they were all Chinese.

You might consider the use of “Chinese” as the way “Anglican” is used. So while Australia is not England, the Anglican part is the same as saying Taiwanese are Chinese or Han Chinese.

It’s the same as how Texans see themselves as Texans but they are also Americans. (Remember the Alamo!)

What Taiwanese mean by that they’re not Chinese is that they’re not mainland Chinese or not mainlanders because they used to, and to a lesser extent today, look down upon the mainlanders struggling in poverty. They also don’t want to be associated with or as a Communist, especially in the Chinese Civil War. They say they are not Chinese like a New Yorker would say he is not a Southerner.

People from Kobe say they’re from Kobe and not from Hyogo prefecture. There is a similarity in pride and not wanting to be socially and economically lumped together.

Californians are not poor Appalachian hillbillies either but they’re American. The New Yorker or Texan is an American as a Taiwanese is Chinese.

Yet more silly, banal, words from the CCP............. Hey, CCP did anyone nation threaten China when Putin made his last appearance there, or when Xi went to Russia. No, they did not, because no country cared one jot. But we must never forget that, Xi and the CCP do not give a da** about the Taiwanese people, because if they did care they would look after the Chinese people on the mainland first.