Beijing has rejected the latest offer of talks from Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-Wen. The Taiwanese leader had expressed her willingness to hold talks with the Chinese leaders in Beijing “as long as they were willing to put aside confrontation.” A Chinese statement said that Tsai’s government was provoking confrontation by continuing to claim independence. President Tsai was re-elected in a landslide last year after pledging to defend Taiwan’s democracy.