Taiwan elections: Beijing dials up cross-strait message after Blinken, US allies applaud president-elect William Lai

Beijing’s foreign ministry lodges protest with US after top diplomat Antony Blinken congratulates Lai, as embassies oppose ‘wrong signals’ on Taiwan

With Beijing more wary of outside inference in Taiwan, visit by US delegation will send out ‘negative signal’, observer says

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Empty billboards in Taipei following the removal of posters of presidential and legislative candidates a day after the election. Photo: AFP

Published: 8:05pm, 14 Jan 2024Updated: 10:06pm, 14 Jan 2024

Beijing has ramped up diplomatic efforts to thwart any attempts to endorse or seek independence for Taiwan, bracing for further cross-strait risks after the island chose William Lai Ching-te of the Democratic Progressive Party to be its next president.

On Sunday, China’s foreign ministry lodged a protest with the United States after Secretary of State Antony Blinken congratulated Lai on his victory the previous evening.

In doing so, the US had seriously violated “its political promises of only maintaining cultural, business and other unofficial ties with Taiwan, sending grave wrong signals to Taiwan’s separatist forces”, the ministry said in a statement.

“The Taiwan question is at the very core of China’s core interests and is the first red line that must not be crossed in China-US relations,” the statement said, urging Washington to fulfil its promise of not supporting Taiwan independence and not seeking to use the Taiwan issue as a tool to contain Beijing.

Blinken’s congratulatory message came minutes after US President Joe Biden had sought to reassure Beijing on Washington’s cross-strait stance. “We do not support [Taiwan] independence,” Biden said shortly after the election results were declared.

Several US allies also drew strong comments from Beijing over congratulatory messages to Lai.