Controversy over Pelosi's Planned Visit to Taiwan
Summary Report by Taiwan Weekly
President Joe Biden of the United States stated on July 20 that the military officials believe it’s “not a good idea right now” for Speaker Nancy Pelosi of the House of Representatives to visit Taiwan at the moment.
CNN quoted an official on July 21 assessing that U.S. apprehensions about China's efforts to block Pelosi’s visit may further escalate regional tension by imposing a no-fly zone over Taiwan. An anonymous official said that in addition to declaring the no-fly zone, China may also send fighter jets into Taiwan’s air defense identification zone (ADIZ), which may trigger responses from Taiwan and the United States.
Pelosi reiterated at a press conference on July 21 that for security reasons no travel plans are discussed. Regarding the military’s opposition, Pelosi said she had never heard anything directly from President Biden, and speculated that the president may have said that the military was worried the special flight carrier would get shot down, or something like that, by the Chinese. Pelosi said that “I don’t know exactly. I didn’t hear it.” Pelosi stressed that deterring China from attacking Taiwan is a big issue. As far as the United States is concerned, it is important to show support to Taiwan, but no one mentioned supporting Taiwan’s independence, for it's up to the Taiwanese people.
According to a CNN report, Dave Butler, spokesman for the Chief of Joint Staffs, said that in general the military will brief policymakers on military assessments, explain what an opponent is likely to do, and discuss logistics, military planning and readiness. But Butler declined to say if Mark Miley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, had spoken to Pelosi about her possible Taiwan trip. According to the Financial Times report on the 23rd, six people who are familiar with the matter revealed that Beijing has warned privately that Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan may trigger a military response from China.
Spokesman Zhao Lijian of the mainland’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs blasted the potential visit, saying it would seriously undermine China’s territorial sovereignty, gravely impact the foundation of U.S.-China relations and send a seriously wrong signal to the Taiwan independence forces.
A Financial Times editorial indicates that perhaps after Biden’s remarks, China felt the weakness of the U.S., Wang Wenbin, spokesperson of China’s foreign ministry, added on the 21st, “if the United States insists on going its way, China will take strong measures to resolutely respond and counteract. We do what we say.”
A Wall Street Journal editorial on July 23 entitled “Pelosi and Biden, Taiwan and China” suggests that Biden’s remarks made Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan more difficult. The editorial began with a witty tone, claiming that Biden has a habit of making trouble whenever he pops off to the media.” Regarding the yet-to-be-determined visit to Taiwan of Speaker Pelosi, the editorial comments that Biden didn’t make the trip easier for anyone, least of all the House Speaker.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) indicated in a statement that it has not received exact information about the visit and has no further comment. It indicated that extending invitations to U.S. officials and politicians to visit Taiwan is an important task for the ministry as it works to deepen ties with the United States. But MOFA so far has not received exact information about Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan. MOFA emphasized that Taiwan and the United States have good mutual trust and smooth communication channels. Taiwan has been closely monitoring high-level interactions of officials between China and the United States. Taiwan will keep close contact with the United States on Pelosi’s visit.
From:
https://www.worldjournal.com/wj/story/121468/6479571
https://udn.com/news/story/6809/6483524