WASHINGTON (NewsNation) — A U.S. congressional delegation in Taiwan has pledged support and weapons to the self-governing island and its new president.
The lawmakers are the first U.S. officials to meet with Taiwan President Lai Ching-te just days after China held military drills around the island in response to his inauguration.
The move comes as Taiwan continues to be a big source of tension between China and the U.S., as China considers the island to be part of its own and describes Taiwan as a renegade province.
China: Trip sends the wrong signal
The delegation included four Republicans and two Democrats and was led by Rep. Michael McCaul, the chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. Last year, China sanctioned the Texas Republican after he visited Taiwan in April.
Lawmakers pledged full support for the island with Congress recently passing a massive security package providing billions of dollars to help Taiwan defend itself.
“There should be no doubt, there should be no skepticism in the United States, Taiwan or anywhere in the world, of American resolve to maintain the status quo and peace in the Taiwan Strait,” Rep. Andy Barr, R-Ky., said at a news conference in the capital, Taipei, after the delegation met Ching-te.
“America is and always will be a reliable partner, and no amount of coercion or intimidation will slow down or stop the routine visits by the Congress to Taiwan,” McCaul said.
Meanwhile, China voiced anger at the U.S. delegation’s trip to Taiwan, claiming it undermined relations between the two countries and sent the wrong signal.
Later this week, U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin plans to head to Asia for a summit with regional leaders, including his counterpart in China.
China’s latest war games to ‘punish’ Taiwan
Beijing carried out two days of war games, encircled Taiwan’s coast and in the Taiwan strait with warships and fighter jets, claiming this was the island’s “punishment” for “separatist acts.”
The U.S. State Department monitored the military drills closely, calling them “reckless” and “risking escalation.”
China has accused Taiwan’s new president of calling for independence.
Taiwan and China split after the 1949 civil war that brought Mao Zedong and his brand of communism to power. Since then, China has regarded self-governing Taiwan as a renegade province that must eventually be reunified.
China has refused to rule out using military force to do so.