TAOYUAN, Taiwan, April 8 (AFP) - Taiwan will not be stopped from engaging with the world and will not give in to pressure, President Tsai Ing-wen said on Friday (Apr 7) as she arrived back from a trip to Central America and the United States, where she met US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy.

China, which claims Taiwan as its own territory, reacted with anger to the McCarthy meeting, though so far, Beijing has held off ratcheting up military tensions to show its displeasure.

Speaking after stepping off her flight, Tsai said her enthusiastic welcome overseas was a powerful message.

"We showed the international community that in the face of pressure and threats, Taiwan will be even more united and will absolutely not yield to suppression, nor due to obstructions stop exchanges with the world," she said at Taiwan's main international airport at Taoyuan, outside of Taipei.