Beijing on Wednesday said it sees an expected meeting between US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and Taiwan’s Tsai Ing-wen during her planned transit of the United States, as a "provocation".

Tsai left on Wednesday afternoon for a trip to Guatemala and Belize that will see her transit through New York and Los Angeles, where she is expected to meet McCarthy.

Zhu Fenglian, spokesperson of the nation’s Taiwan Affairs Office, told reporters in Beijing earlier that Tsai's "transits" of the United States were not just her waiting at the airport or hotel, but for her to meet US officials and lawmakers.

"If she has contact with US House Speaker McCarthy, it will be another provocation that seriously violates the one-China principle, harms China's sovereignty and territorial integrity, and destroys peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait," she said.

"We firmly oppose this and will definitely take measures to resolutely fight back," Zhu added, without giving details.

The Foreign Ministry had said earlier this month it strongly opposes any US contacts with Taiwan and that it had made "stern representations" to Washington about Tsai's stopovers. (Reuters)
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Last updated: 2023-03-29 HKT 16:34