Lai Ching-te ,Taiwan’s president-elect, and has vowed to safeguard the Island’s independence from China.

The 64-year old Lai emerged victorious in elections Saturday on the island of 23-million people that China claims as its own.

As he faced supporters, Lai vowed Taiwan could “continue to walk by side with democracies from around the world.

The new president also expressed a desire to restart dialogue with China, but experts say that’s unlikely to happen since Beijing has criticized Lai by name