The Taiwanese president scrapped a diplomatic trip to South America that included a planned stopover in the US, a close ally of Taipei, reported Bloomberg. Lai Ching-te had planned to stop in New York en route to Paraguay, Guatemala and Belize, all of which recognise Taiwan’s sovereignty.However, the trip has been postponed, if not cancelled, after the US administration, led by president Donald Trump, allegedly blocked Lai from landing in New York. Lai had previously intended to stop in New York on Aug. 4 and then Dallas 10 days later, as part of a trip to diplomatically aligned nations.Planning for Lai’s trip to South America, which was reported earlier this month, was never publicly acknowledged, though. Earlier this month, Paraguay’s president, Santiago Pena, said at an investment forum that he was “eagerly and warmly” preparing to welcome Lai in August. Officials in Paraguay and Guatemala no longer expect Lai to visit next week, according to a Bloomberg report, citing people familiar with the preparations for his visit.Lai, who was inaugurated as Taiwan’s president in May 2024 and labelled by China as a separatist, has yet to visit the US since Trump took office in January. n18oc_world n18oc_crux0:00 INTRODUCTION2:14 DID TRUMP BLOCK LAI’S VISIT TO AVOID UPSETTING XI?3:22 HOW HAS TAIWAN REACTED?5:40 TRUMP SAYS “MAY VISIT CHINA ON XI’S INVITATION”6:40 UK COMES TO TAIWAN’S AID