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China military action to US stopover would be election interference, Taiwan VP says

16 August 2023 05:30 (UTC +04:00)

Any Chinese military action in response to the stopovers in the U.S. by Taiwan Vice President William Lai would be an attempt by Beijing to interfere in the island's elections, Lai said during a trip to Paraguay, APA reports citing Reuters.

Taiwanese officials say China could launch military drills this week, using Lai's stopovers in the United States as a pretext to intimidate voters ahead of an election next year and make them "fear war".

China, which claims Taiwan as its own territory, has an especial dislike of Lai who has previously described himself as a "practical worker for Taiwan independence". He is the frontrunner to be the next president at elections in January.

Speaking to reporters on Tuesday in Paraguay, where he arrived via New York, Lai said such U.S. transits were routine and China had no cause to use them as an excuse to "verbally and militarily intimidate Taiwan", the island's official Central News Agency reported.