After weeks of silence ahead of an important visit to Taiwan, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi angered China when she voiced her support for Taiwan at a high-profile meeting on Wednesday.
Pelosi met with Taiwanese lawmakers and later with Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen, who vowed full U.S. support for democracy on the island China claims as its own.A stormy day of events , she was welcomed by a large crowd of supporters waving banners, followed by the media and protesters. Her meticulously tracked meeting and movement was partially streamed online.
She then set the stage for a new brink between China and the United States over power and influence in Asia. Taiwan is now preparing for Beijing to launch live-fire military exercises on Thursday. This is an unprecedented escalation in recent history that could encircle an island and drop missiles into the sea just 10 miles from its shores.
“Today the world faces a choice between democracy and dictatorship,” Pelosi said during a meeting with Taiwan’s president. “America’s determination to maintain democracy here in Taiwan and around the world remains steadfast.”
Although the talks were downplayed, they were widely hailed in Taiwan as a symbolic victory. Pelosi’s visit was a rare moment when a major foreign power publicly showed its support for the island in the face of fierce opposition from China. Pelosi was the highest-ranking member of the U.S. government to visit the island, the first to do so in 25 years, despite President Biden’s dismay.
The event brought an insult to China and its leader, Xi Jinping.
Xi has made unification of Taiwan with China a primary goal of his rule, and the defense minister warned in June that Beijing would not hesitate to fight for the island. The Chinese government has lodged a formal complaint with the US State Department over Pelosi’s visit.
Heading to South Korea late Wednesday afternoon, Pelosi praised Taiwan’s leader and met with human rights activists. Beijing can isolate Taiwan, but it cannot stop American leaders from going there.
She also hopes a trade deal between Taiwan and the United States is imminent, and had a cordial conversation with the chairman of Taiwanese chip giant TSMC, perhaps one of the world’s most geopolitically important companies. Meetings brought economic commitments. Officials want to increase domestic production of microchips.
The visit comes against the backdrop of increasingly overheating warnings from Beijing. In addition to the military exercises, a series of hacks hit her Taiwanese government website. China used its status as Taiwan’s largest trading partner to announce new trade restrictions on Wednesday, including a ban on imports of some fruits and fish and an export ban on sand, an important building material.
Pelosi’s visit could also undermine White House pressure to shore up support for China from key regional allies. , the Allies suggested that they wished they had been better consulted. Before Pelosi’s trip.
When Pelosi visited the capital, Taipei, the atmosphere was almost carnival-like at times. Hundreds of people gathered to watch her plane land, Taipei’s tallest building was lit up with welcoming messages, and protesters and supporters flocked around her hotel.
When Pelosi arrived at the Taiwan Legislative Assembly with a police escort, a group providing assistance on one side of the building shouted messages such as “U.S. and Taiwan are brothers” and “I love Pelosi.” I put up a written banner. Pro-Beijing demonstrators opposite her called her an “arsonist” and held up signs accusing her of interfering in China’s internal affairs.
A Chinese live-fire exercise in the Strait would directly challenge Taiwan’s defined coastline and territorial waters. Training coordinates indicated that it may be conducted closer than previous tests during the standoff 26 years ago.
The Chinese military has warned all ships and aircraft to avoid the identified areas for 72 hours. Taiwan’s defense ministry said the exercise amounted to a blockade. The exercise will be conducted in six regions around Taiwan and may temporarily block access to some commercial shipping routes and Taiwan ports.
On Wednesday, China’s foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said Pelosi’s visit would lead to further retaliation against the United States and Taiwan.
“What I can say as a concrete measure is that everything that should be included is included,” says Hua. According to People’s Daily“The measures in question are resolute, forceful and effective, and the US side and the Taiwanese independence forces will continue to feel it.”
The key question for Taiwan and the US military is whether they will follow Beijing’s orders to avoid the zone or test China’s resolve by sending boats and planes there. We are concerned that an accidental encounter in a situation could spiral out of control.
This stalemate is reminiscent of the so-called Third Taiwan Strait Crisis of 1995 and 1996. During the crisis, China launched live ammunition and missiles into waters near Taiwan to show its anger over President Lee Teng-hui’s visit to the United States and put pressure on a presidential election. In response, the United States sent two of her carrier groups to the region.
A lot has changed since then. China’s military might has grown stronger and bolder under Xi Jinping. Chinese officials insisted this summer that no part of the Taiwan Strait can be considered international waters. This means it could interfere with and blockade U.S. warships navigating this region, one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world.
Inside China, the Chinese government’s outraged response won a lot of support among the Chinese people. The question for many of the posts online seemed to be whether military exercises would raise a big enough alarm. Many believed that the lack of response so far might encourage Taiwan to formally seek independence.
“Pelosi ushered in a great age that belongs to nature.” widely shared comments On Weibo, an SNS service. “We will take this opportunity to carry out maritime and air patrols around Taiwan without hindrance, steadily normalize them, and move closer to reunification,” he said.
In Taiwan, fear and glee coexisted at what could become the most dangerous military stalemate with China in a generation. Some expressed concern. Eric Liu, a sales manager at a food company in central Taiwan, said he felt both elation and anxiety.
“This is unprecedented for Taiwan and my generation of Taiwanese,” Liu, 26, said in an interview. “I was very excited and also felt in danger.”
“I believe a war in the Taiwan Strait is inevitable, but I don’t want to see it happen anytime soon,” he added.
In a morning meeting with Taiwanese lawmakers, Pelosi praised Taiwan’s performance in dealing with Covid-19, human rights and climate issues, according to Democratic Progressive Party Rep. Lo Chi-Cheng, who was in attendance.
“Following China’s threats and warnings, her visit shows that the United States has decided not to yield to China’s threats and to stand by Taiwan.” I decided to
Pelosi’s afternoon schedule made that particularly clear.
The speaker traveled to Taiwan’s National Human Rights Museum, where he met with a group of activists and civil society leaders. They included a former Tiananmen Protest student leader, a former political prisoner in China, a Tibetan activist and a bookstore in Hong Kong.
Tibetan activist Kharsan Gyaltsen said conference attendees told Pelosi about the worsening human rights situation in China and received help. “Discussing human rights in Taiwan is the biggest slap in the face for a country like China that lacks human rights,” he said.
He said the visit and the global attention it received exposed the failure of China’s acerbic and high-profile diplomats. participates extensively in
Chiu Ta, a former art history professor, waited outside the museum for Pelosi’s arrival. The 91-year-old man said the venue had been a detention center for dissidents during Taiwan’s years of martial law.
Pointing out that many former political prisoners in Taiwan became high-ranking government officials after Taiwan’s transition to democracy, he said he had a deep sympathy for many in China.
“Those who are being persecuted by the Communist Party are friends of Taiwan,” he said.
Jane Perls contributed to the report.
