China has stepped up military exercises near Taiwan ahead of U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to the island nation.
China’s Communist Party-controlled media has threatened ‘unbearable consequences’ if the U.S. House Speaker heads to Taiwan. Last week, Chinese President Xi Jinping warned his American counterpart Joe Biden “not to play with fire” over the upcoming high-profile visit in a phone call.
On Monday, Pelosi kicked off a four nation Asia tour to Singapore, Malaysia, South Korea, and Japan. Though her official itinerary did not mention Taiwan, she arrived in the island for a brief tour on Tuesday.
“Pelosi landed in the Taiwanese capital, Taipei, at just after 10:40 p.m. local time as part of her tour of Asia,” the ABC News confirmed.
Reports suggest that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army, which is already holding live-fire drills in the region, has stepped up military activity.
The Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reported Beijing’s military maneuvering:
Her plane is expected to land at Taipei’s Songshan airport at around 10.20pm, according to Taiwanese media. It is unclear if the aircraft is accompanied by US military planes.In Beijing, the Chinese foreign ministry said the US would “pay the price” if Pelosi went to Taiwan.“The US side will bear the responsibility and pay the price for undermining China’s sovereign security interests,” foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said.Beijing has vowed to take “strong measures” in response to the unannounced visit. Both mainland China and Taiwan on Tuesday stepped up military deployments across the Taiwan Strait. (…)China regards Pelosi’s trip as support for Tsai’s pro-independence administration. Beijing sees Taiwan as a renegade province under the one-China principle and to be reunited by force if necessary.
Taiwan has made its preparations to counter the Chinese military threat. Taiwan “ramped up its military preparedness as cross-strait tensions mount over a potential visit by U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi,” the newspaper Taiwan News confirmed Tuesday. “Taiwan’s armed forces will enter a higher state of preparedness against the threat by the People’s Liberation Army (PLA)” throughout this week,” the daily added.
Pelosi’s visit comes as the Chinese military aggressively moves toward the island nation. Since President Biden took office, Chinese warplanes have increasingly breached the Taiwanese air defense zone, sending fighters and nuclear-capable bombers to intimidate the beleaguered country. Xi Jinping has also renewed his pledge to annex Taiwan, in line with the long-standing policy of the Chinese Communist Party.
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