Taiwan President Lai Ching-te’s brief stop in Hawaii may have appeared understated – no formal US reception, no grand speeches – but its implications extend far beyond floral wreaths and banquets.

War has no winners and peace is priceless, Taiwan President Lai Ching-te said on Saturday in Hawaii after visiting a memorial to the attack on Pearl Harbor on a trip to the United States that has angered Beijing.

Taiwan’s President Lai Ching-te has arrived in Hawaii for a two-day transit in the U.S. as part of a trip to the South Pacific.