China warned on Tuesday that the United States would bear the “responsibility” and “pay the price” if US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visits Taiwan on her Asian tour.
Source: AFP
Beijing regards Taiwan as part of its territory that it must reunify, by force if necessary, and has warned that it will view a visit by Pelosi to the island as a provocation.
If the trip goes through, Pelosi would be the highest-ranking US official to visit Taiwan since her predecessor Newt Gingrich in 1997.
“The United States will bear the responsibility and pay the price for undermining China’s sovereignty and security,” a spokeswoman for Chinese diplomacy, Hua Chunying, told reporters.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said “the United States’ breach of trust on the Taiwan issue is despicable,” in comments posted on the ministry’s website Tuesday that did not mention Pelosi.
The 82-year-old official arrived in Malaysia on Tuesday, where she met with the prime minister and the speaker of the lower house of parliament, on the second leg of her Asia tour after passing through Singapore.
His itinerary then includes stops in South Korea and Japan, but the prospect of a visit to Taiwan continues to command attention.
In a statement, Pelosi said Tuesday that “we are engaged in a wide range of discussions on how to achieve our common goals and make the Indo-Pacific (region) safe.”
– Visit “very likely” –
Russia, for its part, on Tuesday expressed its “absolute solidarity” with its Chinese ally, in a gesture that responds to the fact that Beijing has refused to condemn the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
“Everything related to this tour and a possible visit to Taiwan is pure provocation. This aggravates the situation in the region and increases tensions,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov said.
Several Taiwanese media cited comments from the island’s parliament deputy speaker, Tsai Chi-chang, as saying that it was “highly likely” that Pelosi would travel there in the coming days.
The Taiwanese newspaper Liberty Times quoted unidentified sources as saying that he would arrive on the island on Tuesday night and that he would meet President Tsai Ing-wen the next day.
Although the White House is in a compromised situation with this visit, the spokesman for the National Security Council, John Kirby, said that Pelosi “has the right” to carry it out.
“There is no reason for Beijing to turn a possible visit, consistent with long-standing US policy, into a kind of crisis,” he added.
Kirby cited intelligence reports that China was preparing possible military shows of force that could include firing missiles into the Taiwan Strait or “large-scale” incursions into Taiwanese airspace.
Given this, Taiwan’s Defense Ministry said Tuesday that the territory is “determined, capable and confident” that it will be able to protect the island from China’s growing threats.
Kirby recalled that Pelosi is traveling on a military plane and that although Washington does not fear a direct attack, it does “raise the risks of a miscalculation.”
He also reiterated that US policy has not changed with respect to Taiwan.
This implies support for the autonomous Taiwanese government while recognizing Beijing over Taipei and opposing a formal declaration of independence by Taiwan or a takeover by force by China.
– “Very dangerous” –
The Taiwanese government has remained cautious on the issue.
Prime Minister Su Tseng-chang did not confirm the visit Tuesday when asked by reporters, but thanked Pelosi for her support.
Taiwan’s 23 million people live in fear of invasion, a situation that has worsened under Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Last week, in a conversation with Biden, Xi warned the US not to “play with fire” on the Taiwan issue.
On Monday, Chinese ambassador to the UN Zhang Hun called Pelosi’s visit “very dangerous, very provocative.”
To back up its message, the Chinese military released a martial-sounding video online on Monday showing soldiers shouting in readiness to fight, fighters taking off, paratroopers jumping out of a plane or a hail of missiles annihilating multiple targets.
