Taipei's government will not confirm a meeting with US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy.
Taiwanese presidents routinely pass through the US while visiting diplomatic allies in Latin America, the Caribbean and the Pacific, which, while not official visits, are often used by both sides for high-level meetings.
The US, like most countries, has no formal diplomatic relations with Chinese-claimed Taiwan, but is its most important international backer and arms supplier.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said it strongly opposed any contacts between the US and Taiwan's government and it had already made "stern representations" to Washington about the stop-overs.
"We again warn the Taiwan authorities that there is no way out for Taiwan independence, and any illusions about attempts to collude with external forces to seek independence and provocation is doomed to fail," Wang said.
Tsai will transit through New York and Los Angeles as part of a trip to Guatemala and Belize, leaving Taipei on March 29 and returning on April 7, presidential office spokesman Lin Yu-chan told reporters.Â
Asked whether he could confirm a rumoured meeting with House Speaker McCarthy, Taiwan Vice Foreign Minister Alexander Yui said details of the US transits would be given at a later date once arrangements had been finalised.
An infuriated China staged war games near Taiwan in August following a Taipei visit by then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
Speaking shortly before Taiwan's announcement of Tsai's trip, a senior US administration official said her expected transits are standard practice and China should not use them as a pretext for aggressive action toward the democratically governed island.
"We see no reason for Beijing to turn this transit, again, which is consistent with long-standing US policy, into anything but what it is. It should not be used as a pretext to step up any aggressive activity around the Taiwan Strait," the official said.
Noting that US President Joe Biden hoped to speak to Chinese leader Xi Jinping soon and that Secretary of State Antony Blinken would like to reschedule a postponed trip to Beijing, the official said: "We urge the PRC (People's Republic of China) to keep these channels of communication open."
Taiwan is China's most sensitive territorial issue and a major bone of contention with Washington, which maintains only unofficial ties with Taipei, but is required by US law to provide the island with the means to defend itself.
China believes the United States is colluding with Taiwan to challenge Beijing and giving support to those who want the island to declare formal independence.
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