Taiwan President Lai Ching-te will visit Hawaii and the US territory of Guam during an upcoming trip to the Pacific, prompting condemnations from China, which could respond by staging a fresh round of military drills near the island democracy.

Lai Ching-te’s trip has already drawn condemnation from Beijing and could spur China to stage military drills in response.

Taiwan President Lai Ching-te will visit Guam next week as part of his Pacific tour that also includes Hawaii, though Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero and other local officials are not

Three American citizens imprisoned for years by China have been released. That word comes Wednesday from the White House and it's a rare diplomatic agreement with Beijing in the final months of the Biden administration.

Mark Swidan, Kai Li and John Leung, all of whom had been designated by the U.S. government as wrongfully detained by China, landed Wednesday night in Texas.

The deal suggests a willingness by Beijing to engage with the Biden administration before Donald Trump's return to the White House.