US Blocks Taiwan President from NY Stopover

Donald Trump’s administration has denied permission for Taiwan’s President Lai Ching-te to stop in New York en route to Central America, after China raised objections with Washington about the visit.

Lai planned to transit the US in August en route to Paraguay, Guatemala and Belize, which recognise Taiwan as a country. But the US told Lai he could not visit New York on the way, according to three people familiar with the decision.

On Monday in Taipei, Lai’s office issued a statement saying he had no plans to travel overseas in the near future because Taiwan was recovering from a recent typhoon and Taipei was in talks with the US about tariffs.

The people familiar with the matter said his decision not to travel came after he had been told he would not be allowed to visit New York.

The White House’s decision will deepen concerns among Taiwan’s supporters in Washington that Trump is taking a softer stance on China as he pushes to hold a summit with President Xi Jinping.

The Financial Times reported on Monday that the US commerce department had been told to freeze planned tough export controls against China as the countries hold trade talks and discuss a summit.

Lai also planned to visit Dallas on his trip. It was unclear if the US only denied permission to visit New York or whether he was told he could not transit through the US at all.

China objects to Taiwanese leaders visiting the US, which does not have official diplomatic relations with Taipei. In 2023, the Biden administration allowed then-president Tsai Ing-wen to stop in New York on her way to Belize and Guatemala.

Bonnie Glaser, a China and Taiwan expert at the German Marshall Fund, said the US decision suggested that “Trump wants to avoid irritating Beijing while US-China negotiations are ongoing and planning gets under way for a possible summit with Xi Jinping”.

Glaser said the decision recalled events in Trump’s first term when he delayed arms sales to Taiwan and “went ballistic” after Alex Wong, a senior state department official who served as deputy national security adviser early in this administration, visited Taiwan to give remarks at a conference.

“Trump should be standing up to People’s Republic of China pressure, not caving into it,” Glaser said. “By signalling that aspects of the US relationship with Taiwan are negotiable, Trump will weaken deterrence and embolden Xi to press for additional concessions regarding Taiwan.”

Several people familiar with the debate said the Trump administration was trying to avoid jeopardising trade talks with China. Treasury secretary Scott Bessent and Chinese vice-premier He Lifeng started a third round of negotiations in Stockholm on Monday.

The Trump administration has also held back taking tough actions against China after Beijing in May slowed the export of rare earths to the US, using its dominance in the industry as leverage against Washington.

Randy Shriver, a former senior US official who serves as chair of the board of the Institute for Indo-Pacific Security, said the decision to block Lai from visiting New York reminded him of previous periods when the US avoided taking actions related to Taiwan that it believed would upset Beijing.

“If this is a result of the administration trying to curry favour with Beijing, it is a mistake,” Shriver said.