The US health secretary, Alex Azar, has met Taiwan’s president, Tsai Ing-wen, in the highest-level US visit in more than four decades, as China flew fighter jets into the Taiwan strait.
The meeting in Taipei on Monday threatened to escalate worsening tensions between Washington and Beijing. China claims Taiwan is part of its territory and takes issue with any acknowledgement of Taiwan’s status as a sovereign state.
Azar, a US cabinet member, is the most senior US official to visit Taiwan since Washington broke off official ties in 1979 to grant diplomatic recognition to Beijing.
Applauding Taiwan’s response to the Covid-19 crisis, he said: “Taiwan’s response to Covid-19 has been among the most successful in the world, and that is a tribute to the open, transparent, democratic nature of Taiwan’s society and culture.”
He added: “President Tsai’s courage and vision in leading Taiwan’s vibrant democracy are an inspiration to the region and to the world,” and he pledged “strong support and friendship” from Donald Trump.
Just before the meeting, China sent J-11 and J-10 fighter jets into the strait separating the island from China, briefly crossing on to Taiwan’s side, according to the Taiwanese airforce.
Beijing did not confirm it had sent the aircraft, but China’s foreign ministry condemned Azar’s trip.
“The Taiwan issue is the most important and sensitive issue in Sino-US relations. The US has seriously violated its commitments,” said a foreign ministry spokesman, Zhao Lijian, urging Washington to stop all official exchanges with Taiwan.
As China’s relations with the US and other western countries have deteriorated over the past year, Taiwan has gained more support in the international community, with countries supporting Tsai’s calls for her country’s inclusion in the World Health Organization.
While Washington broke off official ties 40 years ago, it has maintained close relations with Taiwan. Trump has ramped up US support for Taipei with arms sales and legislation in the face of opposition from China.
Increasingly, Taiwan’s democratically elected government is being held up as a foil to China’s ruling Communist party, which critics say is growing more authoritarian under Xi Jinping. The Covid-19 pandemic has prompted further divisions as some countries blame China’s lack of transparency for the outbreak.
Tsai, who has been branded as a “separatist” by Beijing, said it was “highly regrettable” that China had blocked its participation in the WHO during a pandemic.
Tsai was re-elected in January and has received a boost in popularity for her government’s handling of the virus, which has resulted in just seven deaths on the island.
Thanking the US for its support of Taiwan’s bid to attend the World Health Assembly, the decision-making body of the WHO, the president said: “Political considerations should never take precedence over the right to health. The decision to bar Taiwan from participating in the World Health Assembly is a violation of the universal rights to health.”