An aide to former Taiwan president Lee Teng-hui has denied Mr Lee plans to visit the United States next month.
She dismissed Taiwan newspaper reports saying Mr Lee would visit his alma mater, Cornell University, from April 30 and stop over in Japan for medical treatment on his way home. Two of Mr Lee's granddaughters, Lee Kun-yi and Huang Yi-ning, are studying at Cornell.
Lee Ching-yi, an aide to the former president, 78, said Mr Lee wanted to visit the US and Japan at some stage but had no fixed timetable.
Mr Lee's landmark US trip in 1995 triggered menacing Chinese war games, and political analysts said yesterday trips to either country could anger Beijing, which reviles Mr Lee for trying to break Taiwan out of diplomatic isolation during his 12-year rule.
Asked when Mr Lee would make the trip, the aide said: 'It's still very difficult to say. Currently, there are still no concrete plans.'
Analysts said Mr Lee kept a low profile to prevent Beijing from scuttling any plans for an overseas trip. A planned transit through US territory in May by Mr Lee's successor, President Chen Shui-bian, is also believed to be a factor in keeping Mr Lee's travel plans under wraps.
'A protest by the Chinese communists is one of our considerations because we do not want to bring too much trouble to the host nation,' the aide said.