The Chinese mainland expresses its strong objection to William Lai's trip to the US under any pretext or form, Zhu Fenglian, Spokeswoman for China's State Council Office for Taiwan Affairs, said Sunday, commenting on Lai's arrival in New York for a "stopover" in the United States, Xinhua reports.

“We have stated our position clearly on Lai's U.S. "stopover" on many occasions. […] Describing himself as "a pragmatic 'Taiwan independence' worker," Lai clings stubbornly to the separatist position for "Taiwan independence,"" Zhu said.

Earlier it was reported that Taiwan Vice President William Lai Ching-te would visit the United States with a transit stop in Paraguay.

Prior to Lai's departure, Taiwan tried to minimize the significance of the trip, with Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Jeff Liu stating that VP's visits to the US have occurred 11 times and are not out of the ordinary.