Taiwan officially confirmed that President Tsai Ing-wen will transit through the U.S., a trip that risks sparking yet another crisis between the world’s biggest economies.
The outgoing leader will stop in New York on March 29 and 30 on her way to visit diplomatic allies in Central America, and also touch down in Los Angeles on April 6 and 7 on the way back, Presidential Office spokeswoman Lin Yu-chan announced in a Facebook livestream on Tuesday. No details were provided on who she would meet or any other activities in the U.S..
The arrangement would allow her to meet U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in his home country rather than in Taiwan, according to a Taipei official. That’s in part to reduce the chance of a strong military response from China, similar to how Beijing reacted when former Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan last year, the government official said, asking not to be identified while speaking on private arrangements.