U.S. Official Visits Taiwan, and China Warns of Consequences

The New York Times 09.17.2020 1 min read
U.S. Official Visits Taiwan, and China Warns of Consequences
U.S. Official Visits Taiwan, and China Warns of Consequences
A photograph taken by state-owned news media in Taiwan showed Under Secretary of State Keith Krach arriving in Taipei, the capital of Taiwan, on Thursday. Credit: Pool photo by Central News Agency

TAIPEI, Taiwan — A senior U.S. envoy arrived in Taiwan on Thursday to attend a memorial service for former President Lee Teng-hui, in the Trump administration’s latest move to bolster its support of the island in defiance of threats from Beijing.

The foreign ministry in Taiwan said that the envoy, Keith Krach, under secretary for economic growth, energy and the environment, was the highest-level official from the State Department to visit the island in decades.

China, which claims self-governed Taiwan as its territory and opposes formal exchanges of any kind, responded to the news of Mr. Krach’s visit on Wednesday by sending two anti-submarine aircraft into the island’s air defense identification zone, according to the defense ministry in Taiwan. The planes were warned off by the island’s air force, the ministry said.

Read more