TAIPEI - Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen plans to stop off in Los Angeles and New York as part of a visit to Central America, a government minister said on Thursday, a sensitive itinerary Ms Tsai’s office has yet to confirm.

Ms Tsai plans to meet US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in the United States, according to sources, and Mr McCarthy confirmed to US media this week he would meet her in 2023.

China, which seeks reunification with Taiwan, said on Wednesday it was “seriously concerned” by Ms Tsai’s “transit” plans and had asked Washington for clarification.

Taiwan’s presidents, including Ms Tsai, have a record of travelling through the United States en route to other countries, usually for a day or two, though the US government has generally avoided meeting senior Taiwanese officials in Washington.

Asked by a lawmaker in Parliament about Ms Tsai’s arrangements for meeting with overseas Taiwanese while she is abroad, Minister of Overseas Community Affairs Council Hsu Chia-ching said it was confirmed one of these events would happen in New York.

There would be four such meetings with overseas Taiwanese, including those in the Central American countries Ms Tsai would be visiting, Ms Hsu said.

She replied “yes” when Guatemala and Belize were mentioned, both of which have diplomatic ties with Taiwan.

“On the west coast, it’s most likely Los Angeles, but Los Angeles is very big, so we don’t know in which area,” Ms Hsu said, adding that she would be part of the delegation going on the trip.

Taiwan’s presidential office declined to confirm any travel arrangements.

“We are still planning the President’s schedule. As soon as details are finalised, we will make them public,” it said in response to a question from Reuters.

On Wednesday, the presidential office said “transit arrangements” had been in place for many years, though it did not directly mention the US. The trip is likely to take place in April.

Taiwan is a constant source of friction between Beijing and Washington.

The US has no formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan, but it is the island’s most important international backer and arms supplier.

China regards Taiwan as a renegade province to be reunified with the mainland, by force if necessary.

Taiwan rejects China’s sovereignty claims, saying that only the island’s 23 million people can decide their future.

China staged military exercises around Taiwan in August 2022, following a visit to Taipei by then-US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

The US State Department downplayed Ms Tsai’s trip to the US in the face of protests by China.

State Department spokesman Ned Price described Ms Tsai’s expected travel as “transit” rather than a “visit” to the US.

“Transits of the United States by high-level Taiwan officials are consistent with longstanding US policy and with our unofficial and strong relations with Taiwan,” Mr Price told reporters.

“That is nothing new. It is not something that would break any new ground. It is entirely consistent with the status quo.”

He said that Ms Tsai has already transited through the US six times since she was inaugurated in 2016.

But those trips were largely on the way to or from Taiwan’s dwindling number of allies in Latin America, not for high-profile talks in the US. REUTERS