Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te will postpone his planned visit to the remaining allies of his country in Latin America. There are conflicting reports as to why the trip was postponed. Lai was expected to visit the Americas next month as his administration seeks to garner support in a region where many countries have severed diplomatic ties in favor of Chinese relations. It is widely acknowledged that China claims Taiwan as its territory.
There were reports that the Trump administration opposed the proposed president’s stopover in New York. Lai’s government, however, stated that there were no plans for him to travel overseas due to domestic issues, including natural disasters and tariff negotiations with the United States. However, an individual with knowledge of the matter informed the Associated Press that the United States “had asked Taipei to rearrange the transit – not go through New York.”
As per The Financial Times, the United States denied permission for Lai to stop in New York after China raised objections with Washington about the visit. The United States has traditionally facilitated Taiwanese leaders’ transits. However, Lai’s trip would have likely angered Beijing at a time when US President Donald Trump is attempting to reach a trade deal with China. Beijing frequently criticizes any displays of support for Taipei from Washington.
Experts express concern that the White House is setting a negative precedent for US-China relations due to the cancellation. Embassy officials in Guatemala claim that the visit was postponed due to a typhoon that caused many natural disasters in Taiwan. The source informed Reuters that Lai needed to organize his government’s response to extreme weather at home.
Taiwan is still recovering from Typhoon Danas, which struck the densely populated west coast this month with record winds and caused widespread damage to its power grid and some houses. Tammy Bruce, a spokesperson for the US
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jul/30/taiwan-president-cancels-latin-america-trip-us-opposed-nyc-stopover
