China says its ‘priority’ is to stop Taiwan VP visiting US next month

BEIJING, July 20 (Reuters) – It is China’s “priority” to stop Taiwan’s vice president and presidential frontrunner William Lai from visiting the United States next month, the country’s ambassador in Washington said on Wednesday, as Beijing steps up its warnings against the trip. China, which views Taiwan as its own territory, has stepped up military and political pressure over the past three years to try and force the island to accept Beijing’s sovereignty claims, which the government in Taipei strongly rejects. Taiwan will hold presidential and parliamentary elections in January, with Lai, the ruling Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) presidential candidate,…