TAIPEI (AP) -- Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te welcomed what he called the "largest ever" delegation of foreign lawmakers to Taiwan and said Tuesday it showed the importance of democracies uniting, even as Beijing pressured members of the delegation not to visit.
"This demonstrates the support and the value various other countries place on Taiwan," Lai said. "It also sends an important message to democratic countries around the world. Maintaining democracy requires unity, and we must protect democracy together."
Lai made his remarks at a conference in Taipei held by the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China, a group of hundreds of lawmakers from dozens of countries concerned about how democracies approach Beijing.
Beijing views the self-governed island democracy of Taiwan as part of its territory and has been upping its threats to annex it by force if necessary. Lai's party, the Democratic Progressive Party, doesn't seek independence from China because he believes Taiwan is already a sovereign nation.
Beijing sees Lai as a separatist and refuses to speak with him. China has ramped up pressure against the island since Lai took office in May, sending ships and planes on a large military drill to show displeasure at his inauguration. For years now, Beijing has pressured Taiwan -- which has been ruled by the DPP for three terms now -- on the diplomatic, military and economic fronts.
Lai told the conference that Taiwan would work with other democracies to protect democracy from "the threat of authoritarian expansionism."
"China's threat to any country is a threat to the whole world," Lai told attendees. China "uses diplomatic kidnapping, economic coercion, internet attacks, and spreading false and fake things to continuously muddle matters and seek to undermine regional peace and stability."
Lawmakers from at least six countries told the AP earlier this week that Chinese diplomats were pressuring them not to attend the conference. IPAC has long been despised by the Chinese government: Some members have been sanctioned by Beijing, and in 2021 the group was targeted by Chinese state-sponsored hackers, according to a U.S. indictment unsealed earlier this year.
But the group continues to expand. On Tuesday, IPAC leaders announced lawmakers from six new countries were joining the alliance, as well as two lawmakers from Taiwan, a first for the island.
In a written statement, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said IPAC "has no credibility at all" and repeated its stance that Taiwan is part of Chinese territory.
"China firmly opposes any form of official exchanges between countries with diplomatic ties with China and the Taiwan authorities," the statement said.
Beijing prevents countries it has diplomatic relations with from having formal ties with Taipei. China has been peeling off the island's diplomatic allies, often with promises of development aid, in a long-running competition between the two that has swung in Beijing's favor in recent years. The Pacific Island nation of Nauru switched recognition to Beijing earlier this year, a move that reduced Taiwan's dwindling number of diplomatic allies to 12.
Since Lai took office in May, tensions have continued to simmer in the region.
Last month, Beijing's top court issued guidance saying the death penalty could be used against "hardcore" Taiwan independence supporters. In response, Taiwan urged its citizens to avoid traveling to China and the semi-autonomous Chinese territories of Hong Kong and Macao.
The U.S. has been aiding in the upgrading of Taiwan's military equipment and training, with the U.S. State Department approving the sale to Taiwan of missiles and drones for an estimated $360 million in June. In April, the House of Representatives approved an $8 billion military aid package for Taiwan.
The upcoming U.S. elections, however, have raised questions about the future of Washington's relations with Taipei.
Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump said in an interview earlier this month that Taiwan should pay for U.S. protection, dodged the question of whether he would defend the island from Beijing's military action and accused the island of taking the computer chip industry away from the United States.
The U.S., like most countries, does not recognize Taiwan as a country. But it's the island's main partner and is bound by U.S. laws to provide it with the means to defend itself.
Former German member of the European Parliament Reinhard Butikofer said at the meeting that IPAC hadn't discussed Trump or likely Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris, but said Taiwan was committed to spending on defense.
"As regards the facts, as far as I know, Taiwan has already paid $19 billion for arms, bought in the United States, that have not been delivered," said Butikofer, an IPAC leader. "So maybe Mr. Trump should look up his facts."
Lai, the Taiwanese president, has vowed to continue maintaining stability with China while beefing up Taiwan's security by importing military equipment, expanding its defense industry, and reinforcing regional partnerships with unofficial allies such as the U.S., Japan, South Korea and the Philippines.
"We are willing to replace confrontation with dialogue and containment with exchanges under the principles of reciprocity and dignity," Lai said.
