Taipei: Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen has said her region is ready to assist China in combating the recent surge in COVID-19.

China is witnessing a spike in cases ever since Beijing eased its strict restrictions last month.

China stopped its restrictive stance to fight against COVID-19 after nearly three years.

A new study has shown that the abrupt exit from zero-Covid could lead to nearly 1 million deaths.

“Based on humanitarian needs, we are willing to provide necessary assistance (to China) as needed, so that more people can put the pandemic behind and have a healthy and peaceful new year,” Tsai was quoted as saying by CNN in her new year’s remarks on Sunday.

However, she did not mention the way her region was wanting to help China.

What is the basis of China’s claim over Taiwan?

The basis of China’s claim over Taiwan dates back to 1945 when Japan lost its control over the island in 1945,post-World War Two.

The 1949 Chinese civil war led to communists taking control and Chiang Kai-shek the one who lost fled to Taiwan. He ruled it for many decades. This is where China’s claim to Taiwan emanates.

The very fact that Chiang Kai-shek came to Taiwan and was not indigenous to the place is Taiwan’s argument against the claim.

Why is Taiwan important to China?

“A lot of things actually, which of course are related to Taiwan but not necessarily direct to Taiwan. It's more about (China's) relationship changing with the United States – or we should say Western Countries, mainly the United States and China. Taiwan then happens to become a key player and main actor in this dynamic,” said Alice.

Hundred miles from the coast of China, Taiwan is an island that is located in the “first island chain,” this positioning makes it crucial to the US foreign policy.

US-Sino relations hinge on the ‘One China Policy.’ It acknowledges that, “there is only one Chinese Government." The US recognises its formal ties with China. The US shares independent strong “unofficial” relations with Taiwan.