President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) met with U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California on Wednesday local time. The historic meeting was the second time Tsai has met with a sitting House Speaker, and the first time any Taiwanese president has done so on US soil.
Tsai conducted a number of meetings with lawmakers from both parties behind closed doors. This was likely done to avoid angering China further by limiting the public exposure of the meetings. The People’s Republic of China claims sovereignty over Taiwan, despite having never ruled it.
When former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan last August, China responded with unprecedented military exercises and missile launches around Taiwan.
The meeting itself was already seen as a form of compromise by McCarthy. He had promised to visit Taiwan during midterm elections last year. In the end, he settled on meeting Tsai during her transit through the US in his home state of California, rather than in Washington, D.C.
Despite these efforts, China demonstrated its anger at the visit through a number of channels. The Chinese embassy in Washington sent an email to members of congress on Tuesday stating that “China will not sit idly by in the face of a blatant provocation.” The embassy also said China would take “necessary and resolute measures” in response to the meeting. Beijing also carried out live-fire military joint exercises on Saturday, according to an NPR report. US National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said that the government is watching the situation closely.
Tsai and McCarthy gave a joint speech at the event. Tsai thanked McCarthy on behalf of the people of Taiwan. McCarthy in his remarks said that the relationship between Taiwan and the US is at a historic highpoint.
Despite the California meeting, McCarthy has not ruled out the possibility of making a trip to Taiwan. In a solo press conference after the meetings, McCarthy said that China cannot tell him where he can go or who he can speak to. He added that China has no reason to retaliate for Tsai’s visit.
McCarthy said he has advocated for speeding up delivery of weapons to Taiwan. He compared Taiwan to Ukraine, speculating on whether large US arms deliveries to pre-war Ukraine would have changed Russia’s actions. He added that there has been no change in US policy toward Taiwan. When asked about his support for an explicit commitment to Taiwan’s defense in the event of a Chinese invasion, McCarthy said his goal is to prevent that hypothetical from ever happening.
Although arms sales were part of the closed doors discussions, President Tsai emphasized trade and economic partnerships even more than weapons. That’s according to Congressman Seth Moulton, who was present at the meetings, speaking to the New York Times.
In addition to Speaker McCarthy, several other congresspeople from both parties attended the meeting, including the Chair and Ranking Members of the new Select Committee on China.