US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi traveled to Singapore on Monday at the start of her Asian tour as China warned that its military would never be “idle” if Pelosi visits Taiwan.
Amid widespread speculation about whether Pelosi would stop in Taiwan, her office announced Sunday that she would lead a congressional delegation to the region to visit Singapore, Malaysia, South Korea and Japan, without mentioning Taiwan. has it.
Taiwanese media reported that the Ministry of Defense has declared a state of alert regarding Pelosi’s possible trip to Taipei.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said that if Pelosi were to visit Taiwan, it would be “gross interference in China’s internal affairs” and warned that it would lead to “very serious developments and consequences.”
“We want to let the United States know once again that China is on high alert, the Chinese People’s Liberation Army will never be idle, and China will make decisive responses and strong countermeasures to defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity,” Zhao said. He said at the regular daily press conference.
Asked what kind of actions the People’s Liberation Army might take, the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman said: “If it dares to go, then let’s wait and see.”
For his part, White House communications coordinator John Kirby told MSNBC that any possible trip by Pelosi to Taiwan would not be provocative.
He added: “It is worrisome that China will use Pelosi’s possible visit to Taiwan as an excuse to increase tensions, and the possible visit to Taiwan shows that the US policy regarding one China has not changed and our commitment to the security of Taipei has not changed.”
China sees the visit of American officials to Taiwan as a sign of encouraging the island’s independence camp.
Washington does not have formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan, but is required by US law to provide the island with means of self-defense.
The trip by Pelosi, who holds the third-highest office in the United States and has long been a critic of China, comes amid deteriorating relations between Washington and Beijing. Republican Newt Gingrich was the last Speaker of the House of Representatives to visit Taiwan in 1997.
In a phone call to his American counterpart Joe Biden last Thursday, Chinese President Xi Jinping warned that Washington must adhere to the one-China principle, warning that “those who play with fire will be satisfied with it.”
In contrast, Biden told the Chinese president that the US policy on Taiwan has not changed and that Washington firmly opposes unilateral efforts to change the status quo or undermine peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.
Taiwanese Prime Minister Su Tsing-chang did not directly answer Monday when asked if Pelosi would visit Taiwan next Thursday, local media had expected.
“We usually warmly welcome foreign dignitaries to visit our country,” Su told reporters in Taipei.
“If Pelosi visits Taiwan, it will prompt China to take the strongest countermeasures in years, but he did not expect it to spark a major military conflict,” said Shi Yinhong, a professor of international relations at Renmin University in Beijing. .
He said: “China has clearly reiterated its opposition to Taiwan separatism. The United States has repeatedly reiterated that the country’s one-China policy has not changed and opposes any change in the situation on both sides of the Taiwan Strait.”
He continued: “I am sure that none of the parties will deliberately take military action, unless there is an accident.”
Source: Lebanon Debate
