Taipei: Taiwan's leader Lai Ching-te, currently on a three-nation Asia Pacific trip, held a national security meeting via video conference on Wednesday amid a deepening political crisis in South Korea. Lai, who is in Guam, was updated on the situation following South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol's failed attempt to impose martial law, as reported by Taipei-based Central News Agency. According to Anadolu Agency, Lai instructed his national security team to maintain close contact with other "democratic partners" to monitor developments following the martial law attempt in South Korea. He emphasized the need to assess potential risks and impacts on regional security, geopolitics, and economics and to be ready to respond. Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) retracted a statement comparing Taipei's legislative situation to South Korea's martial law decision, which was posted on social media on Tuesday but later removed. The DPP issued a new post distancing itself from the earlier comparison. During his stopover in Guam, Lai also spoke with US House Speaker Mike Johnson and held a phone call with US House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, as reported by TaiwanPlus News. Both US leaders stressed bipartisan support for Taiwan in Congress, according to Taiwan's Presidential Office. Meanwhile, China responded to Lai's conversation with Johnson by urging Washington to refrain from interfering in Beijing's "internal affairs" and to stop sending "wrong signals" to Taiwan independence supporters. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian reiterated China's position that the Taiwan issue is central to China's core interests and emphasized that it is a "red line" in China-US relations. Lin warned that China would take strong measures to defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity if necessary.