Vice President-elect William Lai says that Taiwan will cooperate with the US and the international community to achieve common goals. Lai was speaking Tuesday during a meeting on religious freedom held in Washington, DC.
Lai said Taiwan is a democratic country that respects religious freedom. He said Taiwan will work to protect religious freedom and build a world free from fear of religious persecution.
Sam Brownback, the US Ambassador at Large for International Religious Freedom, said Lai’s visit is historic, as he is the highest-level Taiwanese official to visit the US in years. Lai’s US trip is the first by a Taiwanese vice-president elect since the US switched diplomatic recognition from Taipei to Beijing in 1979.
During the meeting on religious freedom, US senator Jim Risch expressed support for Taiwan’s full inclusion in the WHO as the world responds to a coronavirus outbreak centered in China. He also expressed support for a possible free trade agreement between Taiwan and the US.
Also at the meeting, US senator Bob Menendez told Lai that he was looking forward to cooperating with President Tsai Ing-wen towards strengthening US-Taiwan ties. Menendez said whether in security or trade relations, the importance of Taiwan-US ties cannot be overstated.