Nancy Pelosi Breaks Silence on Taiwan Visit, China Still Angry After 'Dangerous Provocation'

Following House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taiwan, US-China ties are on the verge of collapsing. Despite the Biden administration's reservations, Pelosi was greeted warmly in Taipei and enjoyed widespread bipartisan backing in Washington.

Her trip, however, has infuriated Beijing and Chinese nationalists, complicating already tense ties even after she departs. Already, China is preparing major displays of force in the Taiwan Strait to demonstrate that its claims to the island are unassailable.

US Says Pelosi Visit Doesn't Change Stance Toward China, Taiwan

As the US pushes on with pro-Taiwan protests, arms sales, and diplomatic pressure, the dangers of armed conflict, deliberate or not, have increased. The trip might exacerbate Washington's already delicate relationship with Beijing, as the two sides grapple with disagreements over trade, the Ukraine crisis, human rights, and other issues. Pelosi tweeted today and says that the Us stands with the people of Taiwan as well as to those who are engaged to democracy and human rights.

Concerned about China's reaction, the Biden administration discouraged but did not prevent Pelosi from visiting Taiwan. It has gone to great lengths to assure Beijing that the House Speaker is not a member of the executive branch and that her travel signifies no change in the US "one-China" policy.

The White House also stated that Pelosi's travel makes no difference to the US policy toward China and Taiwan. Karine Jean-Pierre, the US press secretary, said the US expected China's aggressive reaction, which she called unnecessarily, according to AP News.

Pelosi landed late Tuesday with a congressional group on an unannounced but highly watched visit, ignoring China's repeated warnings, on a journey she claimed underscored the US's enduring support for Taiwan's democracy.

Pelosi, a long-time opponent of China, particularly on human rights, and a political supporter of US President Joe Biden, met with a former Tiananmen Square protester, a Hong Kong bookseller arrested by China, and a Taiwanese activist recently freed by China.

Newt Gingrich was the last US House Speaker to visit Taiwan in 1997. Pelosi's visit comes at a time when US-China ties are deteriorating rapidly. China has grown into a significantly more formidable economic, military, and geopolitical powerhouse during the last quarter-century.

China believes Taiwan to be part of its territory and has never refrained from using force to seize control of it. The US and the Group of Seven foreign ministers advised China not to use the visit as a pretext for military action against Taiwan.

China Claims Nancy Pelosi's Visit Damages Stability in Taiwan

China's military planned combined air and sea operations near Taiwan and conventional missile test launches in the waters east of the island, with Chinese state news agency Xinhua reporting live-fire drills and other activities from Thursday to Sunday.

According to China's foreign ministry, Pelosi's travel jeopardizes peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, undermines the political underpinning of US-Chinese ties, and violates China's sovereignty and territorial integrity, as per Reuters via MSN.

Taiwan has claimed that Chinese military maneuvers in the waters surrounding the island country amount to a blockade in reaction to Nancy Pelosi's visit. According to the state-run Global Times, the drills included J-20 stealth fighter planes and conventional missile test firings, which might cause delays or impede transportation to and from the island.

Taiwan's defense ministry claimed in a statement on Wednesday that Chinese maneuvers in the waters surrounding the island country amounted to a blockade of its air and maritime space. Taiwan is also negotiating alternate aircraft routes with its neighboring Philippines, according to its official Central News Agency.

Taiwan, a worldwide chip manufacturing powerhouse, does not need to find alternate maritime transit, according to Transport Minister Wang Kwo-tsai, because its ships can bypass Chinese drill zones.

Meanwhile, China claims that military drills surrounding Taiwan caused no navigation problems. The Chinese foreign ministry's spokesperson, Hua Chunying, stated that the country's military measures were legal and intended to discourage Taiwan, Independent reported.

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Nancy Pelosi, Taiwan, China, Us