Taiwan's labor minister, Hung Sun-han, recently traveled to China to attend an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting, marking the first ministerial-level visit from Taiwan under President Lai Ching-te’s administration. This visit comes at a time of increasing political and military tensions with China, which has been conducting regular military exercises near Taiwan and rejecting calls for dialogue with President Lai, whom it labels a "separatist." APEC is an international economic forum that includes Taiwan, though it is referred to as "Chinese Taipei" to reflect China's stance that Taiwan is part of its territory. China will host an APEC leaders' summit in Shenzhen this November, and Taiwan has been invited to participate under the "Chinese Taipei" designation. President Lai has consistently argued that Taiwan's future should be decided by its people, not by China. The visit by Minister Hung, who previously served as a legislator for Lai’s party and was active in human rights issues in Tibet and Hong Kong, highlights the delicate balance Taiwan seeks in maintaining international engagement while avoiding direct confrontation with Beijing. Hung departed from Taiwan for Nanjing, where the APEC human resources ministerial meeting is taking place. The Taiwanese Ministry of Labour did not release further details, and media footage showed Hung leaving the airport without speaking to reporters. China's Taiwan Affairs Office reiterated that Taiwan's participation in APEC is handled in line with the "one China principle," which asserts that Taiwan is part of China. However, no additional information was provided by the office. In the past, lower-level officials from Taiwan have attended APEC events hosted by China, which does not recognize Taiwan as an independent country. To avoid diplomatic disputes, Taiwan's president has not attended the APEC leaders' summit directly, instead sending business leaders or former officials as representatives. For the upcoming Shenzhen summit, Taiwan has yet to announce who will represent it.