US reaffirms support for Taiwan's self-defence

TAIPEI: The United States will continue to assist Taiwan with its self-defence and wants to see peace across the Taiwan Strait without coercion or the threat of force, a visiting US senator told President Lai Ching-te on Friday.

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The United States is Taiwan's most important international backer and arms supplier despite the lack of formal diplomatic ties with the Chinese-claimed island.

Meeting Lai at the presidential office in Taipei, Republican Senator Pete Ricketts said that although administrations change, the bipartisan support for Taiwan in Congress continues.