News - Middle East: Beijing has warned of reprisals against Chinese Taipei after Taiwanese leader William Lai Ching-te sent "dangerous signals" with a pro-independence speech during his inauguration ceremony.

Lai on Monday took part in the inauguration ceremony as the new president of the self-ruled island, succeeding Tsai Ing-wen to embark on an unprecedented third term for the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) – which Beijing has consistently blamed as the cause of strained cross-strait relations.
China's Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) released a statement following Lai’s inauguration speech, saying the new president had fully exposed his radical nature as a “Taiwan independence worker.”