Until now, there had been no major step toward visits to the U.S. by senior Taiwan officials involved in national security and foreign affairs, which are "portfolios with a high degree of Taiwan's national sovereignty," said Ian Tsung-yen Chen, an assistant professor at National Sun Yat-sen University in Kaohsiung.
"The invitation of the secretary-general of the National Security Council and the minister of foreign affairs to visit the United States this time is a major breakthrough, especially from the perspective of Taiwan and in terms of the Taiwan Travel Act," Chen said, referring to U.S. legislation that encourages official exchanges between Washington and Taipei.
Therefore, Wu's visit this time sends a much stronger message about resisting China's pressure, Chen added.
The Taiwanese people may be looking at whether to vote for the U.S.-backed Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) or Beijing-supported KMT, Chen of National Sun Yat-sen University said.
"If the U.S. wants to contain China, it needs a stable and cooperative political party in Taiwan. At present and based on the trajectory of the past 20 years, it is obviously not the KMT, but the DPP."
If China steps up intimidation against Taiwan as the island's presidential race heats up, the U.S. might step up in its support and gestures, Chen said.