Taiwan's President Tsai: 'Democracy Is Under Threat'

Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen, whose meeting Wednesday with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and a bipartisan group of lawmakers prompted an angry response from China, warned during a speech alongside the speaker that "democracy is under threat."

"It is no secret that today the peace we have maintained and the democracy which [we] have worked hard to build are facing unprecedented challenges," Tsai said in remarks with McCarthy, R-Calif., at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California, reports CNN. "We once again find ourselves in a world where democracy is under threat, and the urgency of keeping the beacon of freedom shining cannot be understated."

Tsai's meeting with McCarthy marked the second time she's met in the space of a year with a U.S. House speaker, after meeting in Taiwan in August with then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Her visit this week also marks the first time a president of Taiwan has met with a U.S. House speaker while on American soil.

Tsai and McCarthy used the meeting to highlight the ties between the United States and Taiwan, and the speaker commented that the friendship between the two countries "is a matter of profound importance to the free world. It is critical to maintaining economic freedom, peace, and regional stability."

Tsai agreed that the two countries are "stronger when we are together."

"In our efforts to protect our way of life, Taiwan is grateful to have the United States by our side," she said.

Beijing issued an angry statement about the meeting, with a spokesperson from China's Foreign Ministry saying that "China firmly opposes and strongly condemns it."

The statement added that, "In response to the egregiously wrong action taken by the United States and Taiwan, China will take strong and resolute measures to defend our sovereignty and territorial integrity."

China also warned the United States to "stop containing China by exploiting the Taiwan issue" and to "not go further down the wrong and dangerous path."

Wednesday morning, before Tsai and McCarthy met, China sent several ships out near Taiwan's coast, including a large-scale patrol and rescue vessel for a three-day joint patrol and inspection operation, the Chinese Fujian Maritime Safety Administration said in a statement.

After the meeting, on Wednesday night, the Taiwan Defense Ministry reported a Chinese aircraft carrier group passing southeast of Taiwan for a training mission in the Western Pacific.

McCarthy said at a news conference after he met with Tsai that it is not the intention of the United States to escalate tensions with Beijing, but pointed out that "I am the speaker of the House. There's no place that China is going to tell me where I can go or who I can speak to."

He added that there is "no need for retaliation" for the meetings.

A Pentagon spokesperson told reporters Wednesday that the Defense Department did not send additional assets to the Indo-Pacific region to prepare for an aggressive Chinese response.

Beijing also launched military drills around Taiwan last summer in response to the Pelosi visit, which raised concerns over the potential response to Tsai's meeting with McCarthy.

Tsai's delegation also made official visits to her country's diplomatic allies Guatemala and Belize during their 10-day tour to shore up relationships as pressure from Beijing increases.

China's Consulate General in Los Angeles spoke out before the Tsai-McCarthy meeting, calling it "not conducive to regional peace, security and stability" and warning that it would "undermine the political foundation" between the United States and China.

McCarthy considered the meeting important, as he's made creating a select committee on China one of his main priorities and he considers the relationship between the United States and China a central issue.

• China Vows 'forceful' Measures after US-Taiwan Meeting
• Pelosi Commends McCarthy, Tsai Meeting