Taiwan will choose a new president and parliament on January 13 [Taiwan Presidential Office via AP Photo] Last month, Joe Biden and Xi Jinping strolled through the lush gardens of a grand California mansion engaged in a candid, intimate conversation. It was their first face-to-face summit in a year and the Chinese president was blunt – Taiwan, Xi told his US counterpart, was the most important and dangerous issue in the two countries’ fractious relationship. Keep reading list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4 Taiwan’s Tsai Ing-wen says island’s future must be decided by its people list 2 of 4 China accuses Taiwan of ‘hyping up’ military threat ahead of elections list 3 of 4 In bid to counter China, US ramps up effort to boost military ties in Asia list 4 of 4 Taiwan spots Chinese warships, aircraft near island ahead of elections end of list Beijing’s policy towards the self-ruled island it claims as its own will again be under the spotlight when voters in Taiwan go to the polls on January 13 to choose a new president and parliament, and the United States will be watching closely. At the moment, William Lai Ching-te, the incumbent vice president and the candidate of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), is expected to emerge the winner. That result would likely rankle Beijing, which portrays Lai as a “separatist” bent on independence and ensure continued tension across the narrow strait that separates the island from China. “Washington is well prepared to deal with any choice that the Taiwan electorate makes, but there’s certainly going to be different opportunities and challenges depending on what the results of the election are,” Rorry Daniels, the managing director of the Asia Society Policy Institute, told Al Jazeera, adding that the US would be considering […]
Click here to visit source. US watching Taiwan elections closely as China reiterates claim to island