The top national security officials of the United States and Taiwan met earlier this month. The meeting between US national security adviser John Bolton and Taiwan’s national security chief David Lee was the first occasion of this kind since 1979, the year when the US formally ended diplomatic relations with Taiwan.
China’s foreign ministry said it was “extremely dissatisfied and resolutely opposed” to the meeting, which comes at a time of increased trade tensions between the US and China. While Taiwan is an autonomous state, it has never formally declared independence from China, which considers the island part of it’s sovereign territory. China therefore opposes official meetings of any kind between US and Taiwanese representatives.
Read more: China bridles at rare meeting between Taiwan and U.S. security officials
