Beijing once again warned the United States to stop meeting Taiwan officials, marking a new escalation of tensions over the self-ruled island the Chinese regime regards as its breakaway province. The regime complained after Taiwan Vice President William Lai held a brief informal talk with U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris during a trip to Honduras, and a virtual meeting with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi during a stopover in the United States. “China always opposed any form of official interaction between the United States and Taiwan,” said Zhao Lijian, the regime’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson, in a media briefing last Friday. Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen, nevertheless, pledged to “stride out” into the world in her Lunar New Year greeting on Sunday, striking a defiant tone in the face of unrelenting Chinese pressure. Tsai thanked democratic nations for their assistance to the island over the past year in her greeting. Lai also expressed …