Lok Sabha Elections 2024: Modi seeks closer ties with Taiwan after re-election

By Dan Strumpf

As the BJP led-NDA looks to form the government at the Centre for the third consecutive time, although with a much diminished margin of victory, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he looks forward to closer ties with Taiwan in a social-media post responding directly to the island’s newly-elected president. 

Modi thanked Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te, who had congratulated him on X on his third straight election victory. Lai had touted the “fast-growing” India-Taiwan partnership which, he said, would contribute to peace and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific.

"I look forward to closer ties as we work towards mutually beneficial economic and technological partnership", Modi said on X.

Modi faces the renewed challenge in his third term of managing its tense relationship with China, which claims the self-ruled island of Taiwan as its own. 

China’s foreign ministry said Beijing had "made protests to India" and reminded New Delhi that it considers Taiwan part of its country. 

"India has made serious political commitments and is supposed to recognize, be alarmed about and resist the Taiwan authorities’ political calculations", said foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning, at a regular press briefing in Beijing on Thursday.

China protests any nation that it has diplomatic ties with from having official contact with Taiwan. China views Lai as a separatist leading Taiwan towards independence, and recently held major military drills around the island following his inauguration.

Relations between India and China have been at a low-point since a border clash in 2020. On Wednesday, China’s Foreign Ministry congratulated Modi on his election win, saying "a healthy and stable China-India relationship is in the interest of both countries".

India and Taiwan, meanwhile, have been forging closer economic ties under Modi, with the two sides signing a labor-supply pact that could see Taiwan hire as many as 1,00,000 Indian workers.