We have to fight together to prevent war: Taiwan President in Hawaii

Lai's Pacific tour, his first trip overseas, has sparked fiery rhetoric from China

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HONOLULU - Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te said in the US on Nov 30 that "we have to fight together to prevent war", as he kicked off a week-long tour of the Pacific that has sparked fiery rhetoric from Beijing.

Taiwan faces the constant threat of a military attack by China, which considers it part of its territory and regularly deploys fighter jets and warships around the self-ruled island to press its claims.

Washington is Taipei's most important partner and biggest provider of weapons, but maintains a "strategic ambiguity" when it comes to putting boots on the ground to defend the island from China.

Speaking at a dinner in the US island state of Hawaii on Nov 30, Mr Lai said there were "no winners" from conflict and "we have to fight, fight together to prevent war".

He earlier received a standing ovation as he walked down a red carpet for the gathering with US government officials, state politicians, members of Congress and Taiwanese expatriates.

He said the US flag and Hawaii state flag given to him as gifts "symbolise the longstanding friendship between Taiwan and the United States and lays the foundation for further cooperation in the future".

The chairwoman of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT), the body that serves as the de facto US embassy, said the partnership between Washington and Taipei was "rock solid".