SHANGHAI, April 5. /TASS/. Blatantly ostentatious interference by the United States in Taiwan-related matters has intensified lately against the background of ongoing changes in the international situation, but Beijing will respond resolutely to such actions on the part of Washington, a Chinese expert told TASS on Wednesday.

"In fact, this is yet another manifestation of the US meddling in the issue of Taiwan. Official communications between members of the US Congress and Taiwanese [officials] while the island’s regional leaders are in transit between flights is not a new gimmick that they just pulled out of their bag of tricks," said Li Yihai, co-chair of the International Joint Center for Security and Crisis Management at the Shanghai Academy of Sciences. His comment referred to an upcoming meeting between Taiwanese leader Tsai Ing-wen and US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, which is scheduled to take place in California later today.

"In recent years, however, such instances have become more frequent against the backdrop of changes in the international situation and in the China-US relationship, marking a serious deviation from the trend supported by the majority of countries around the world, which stand in favor of China’s peaceful reunification," Li added.

According to the Chinese expert, Beijing has repeatedly warned Washington that any official communication with Taiwan is inadmissible and has signaled its readiness to respond "in a resolute and targeted way."

Interference by outside forces has noticeably hampered China’s progress toward reuniting the two shores of the Taiwan Strait peacefully, Li said. "Outside forces primarily means the United States," he specified.

"The Taiwan issue is an internal affair of China, as it concerns China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. The issue of Taiwan pertains to China’s fundamental interests and forms the bedrock on which the political foundation of Chinese-American relations lies, and also constitutes that bright red line that must not be crossed in these relations," Li maintained. He urged Washington to stop sending inappropriate signals to supporters of independence for the island, which are only to the detriment of relations between China and the United States as well as to stability in the Taiwan Strait.