Beijing, 3 August 2022 (TDI): The Defense Ministry spokesperson of China, Wu Qian, made the following remarks on Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan:
On August 2, Speaker of the US House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi visited China’s Taiwan region. The Chinese side strongly condemns and firmly opposes this visit.
Despite the Chinese side’s repeated warnings of the serious consequences this visit would cause, Pelosi insisted on making the wrong move, maliciously provoking and creating the crisis, which seriously violated the one-China principle and the provisions of the three China-US joint communiqués, seriously eroded the political foundation of China-US relations, and seriously undermined China-US state-to-state and military-to-military relations.
This act of the US side has sent a seriously wrong signal to the separatist forces for “Taiwan independence”, and further escalated tensions in the Taiwan Strait.
The DPP authorities have solicited foreign support, colluded with external forces to stir up troubles and been bent on inviting Pelosi to visit Taiwan. Such acts are very dangerous and will inevitably lead to serious consequences.
The Chinese People’s Liberation Army is on high alert and will take a series of targeted military operations in response to resolutely safeguard China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and resolutely thwart the interference by external forces and the separatist schemes for “Taiwan independence.”
Pelosi’s visit and Chinese reaction
On August 2, 2022, Nancy Pelosi, the speaker of the US House of Representatives, paid a brief visit to Taiwan as part of a tour of Asia that also included brief visits in Singapore, Malaysia, South Korea, and Japan. The White House did not formally endorse the visit.
The People’s Republic of China (PRC) criticized the visit. The PRC, which considers Taiwan and the ROC-held areas to be a part of its territory, has repeatedly stated that a high-ranking US official’s visit to Taiwan would be a violation of China’s territorial integrity, sovereignty, and strategic interests by the US.
Aiman Iqbal is the Managing Editor at the Journal of Peace and Diplomacy published by the Institute of Peace and Diplomatic Studies (IPDS), and the Assistant Editor of The Diplomatic Insight magazine. She holds an MPhil in International Relations. She can be reached at aimaniqbal106@gmail.com
