TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Former Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) on Tuesday (Jan. 24) rebutted allegations his planned trip to the U.S. has run into a wall.

The leader of the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP), Ko has long suggested he would throw his hat into the ring for the presidential election in 2024 and intends to visit the U.S. in the spring.

Rumors swirl that the plan has encountered obstacles as people in Washington refused to meet him over concerns about his cross-strait stance and his apparent China-friendly leanings. Ko shrugged off such claims, saying the itinerary is still being planned as uncertainties abound, wrote UDN.

His schedule cannot be confirmed until the annual agenda of the TPP is set, Ko explained when asked by the media during a visit to a temple in New Taipei.

Ko also sought to defend his cross-strait strategy, believing that confronting China is not in the best interest of Washington. Rather, he said he sees eye to eye with U.S. State Secretary Antony Blinken on what he described as a more pragmatic policy.

In addressing the U.S. approach to China, Blinken once said, “We’ll compete with confidence; we’ll cooperate wherever we can; we’ll contest where we must. We do not see conflict.”