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Blinken congratulates new Taiwanese leader

1 min read
Blinken congratulates new Taiwanese leader
People attend a pro-Ukraine rally marking the one-year anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion on Feb. 25, 2023, in Taipei, Taiwan. (Walid Berrazeg/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

Taiwanese voters elected William Lai as their leader in a historic presidential election, cementing a pro-sovereignty direction that increasingly aligns with the West, angering Beijing.

China is Russia's top supporter and has sought to disrupt the existing world order led by the United States and its allies.

"We congratulate Dr. Lai Ching-te on his victory in Taiwan's presidential election. We also congratulate the Taiwan people for participating in free and fair elections and demonstrating the strength of their democratic system," U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said.

However, the Biden Administration says it does not support Taiwan's independence and maintains the One China policy that only recognizes Beijing.

Lai's pro-sovereignty Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) has governed Taiwan for eight years and he has signaled backing for Taipei's independence.

Drawing on the lessons from Ukraine, Taiwan has been developing an asymmetric warfare strategy that focuses on an agile defense.

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Lance Luo

Lance Luo (Li P. Luo) is a news editor at the Kyiv Independent. Previously, he worked at Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and Hromadske Television in Kyiv. He also spent three years in finance and strategy consulting. Mr. Luo graduated from the University of Southern California and serves as an arbitrator at FINRA.

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