TAIPEI: U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi arrived in Taiwan late on Tuesday on a trip she said shows an unwavering American commitment to the Chinese-claimed self-ruled island, but China condemned the highest-level U.S. visit in 25 years as a threat to peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.
Pelosi and the rest of her delegation disembarked from a U.S. Air Force transport plane at Songshan Airport in downtown Taipei after the nighttime landing on a flight from Malaysia to begin a visit that risks pushing U.S.-Chinese relations to a new low. They were greeted by Taiwan's foreign minister, Joseph Wu, and Sandra Oudkirk, the top U.S. representative in Taiwan.
Her arrival prompted a furious response from China at a time when international tensions already are elevated by Russia's invasion of Ukraine. China considers Taiwan part of its territory and has never renounced using force to bring it under its control. The United States warned China against using the visit as a pretext for military action against Taiwan.
"Our congressional delegation's visit to Taiwan honors America's unwavering commitment to supporting Taiwan's vibrant democracy," Pelosi said in a statement shortly after landing. "America's solidarity with the 23 million people of Taiwan is more important today than ever, as the world faces a choice between autocracy and democracy."
Pelosi, second in the line of succession to the U.S. presidency, is a long-time China critic.
Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen will meet with Pelosi on Wednesday morning and then have lunch together, the presidential office said. Pelosi, travelling with six other American lawmakers, became the most-senior U.S. political leader to visit Taiwan since 1997.
China's foreign ministry said it lodged a strong protest with the United States, saying Pelosi's visit seriously damages peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, "has a severe impact on the political foundation of China-U.S. relations, and seriously infringes upon China's sovereignty and territorial integrity."
Chinese warplanes buzzed the line dividing the Taiwan Strait before her arrival. The Chinese military has been put on high alert and will launch "targeted military operations" in response to Pelosi's visit, the defence ministry said.
The Chinese military announced joint air and sea drills near Taiwan starting on Tuesday night and test launches of conventional missiles in the sea east of Taiwan, with Chinese state news agency Xinhua describing live-fire drills and other exercises around Taiwan from Thursday to Sunday.
Pelosi is on an Asia tour that includes announced visits to Singapore, Malaysia, South Korea and Japan. Her Taiwan visit was unannounced but widely anticipated.
In a Washington Post opinion piece released after landing, Pelosi explained her visit, praising Taiwan's commitment to democratic government while criticizing China as having dramatically increased tensions with Taiwan in recent years.
"We cannot stand by as the CCP proceeds to threaten Taiwan - and democracy itself," Pelosi said, referring to the Chinese Communist Party.
Pelosi also cited China's "brutal crackdown" on political dissent in Hong Kong and its treatment of Muslim Uyghurs and other minorities, which the United States has deemed genocide.
As Pelosi's motorcade approached her hotel, escorted by police cars with flashing red and blue lights, scores of supporters cheered and ran toward the black vehicles with their arms outstretched and phone cameras on. The motorcade drove straight into the hotel's parking lot.
On Tuesday night, Taiwan's tallest building, Taipei 101, lit up with messages including: "Welcome to Taiwan", "Speaker Pelosi" and "Taiwan (heart) USA".
WHITE HOUSE REACTS
White House national security spokesman John Kirby said after Pelosi's arrival that the United States "is not going to be intimidated" by China's threats or bellicose rhetoric and that there is no reason her visit should precipitate a crisis or conflict.
"We will continue to support Taiwan, defend a free and open Indo-Pacific and seek to maintain communication with Beijing," Kirby told a later White House briefing, adding that the United States "will not engage in sabre-rattling."
Kirby said China might engage in "economic coercion" toward Taiwan, adding that the impact on American-Chinese relations will depend on Beijing's actions in the coming days and weeks.
Pelosi, 82, is a close ally of U.S. President Joe Biden, both being members of the Democratic Party, and has helped guide his legislative agenda through Congress.
Four sources said Pelosi is also scheduled on Wednesday to meet activists outspoken about China's human rights record.
The United States has no official diplomatic relations with Taiwan but is bound by American law to provide it with the means to defend itself. China views visits by U.S. officials to Taiwan as sending an encouraging signal to the pro-independence camp on the island. Taiwan rejects China's sovereignty claims, saying only the Taiwanese people can decide the island's future.
Several Chinese warplanes flew close to the median line dividing the Taiwan Strait on Tuesday morning before leaving later in the day, a source told Reuters. Several Chinese warships also sailed near the unofficial dividing line since Monday and remained there, the source said.
Taiwan's defence ministry said 21 Chinese aircraft entered its air defence identification zone on Tuesday, and that China was attempting to threaten key ports and cities with drills around the island. Taiwan's armed forces have "reinforced" their alertness level, it added.
Taylor Fravel, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology expert on China's military, said China's planned exercises appear as though they may be greater in scope than during a Taiwan Strait crisis in 1995 and 1996.
"Taiwan will face military exercises and missile tests from its north, south, east and west. This is unprecedented," Fravel said.
Four U.S. warships, including the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan, were positioned in waters east of Taiwan on what the U.S. Navy called routine deployments.
Russia, locked in confrontation with the West over its Ukraine invasion, condemned Pelosi's visit. Foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova called the United States "a state provocateur."
Reuters
Wed Aug 03 2022
Taiwan Foreign Minister Joseph Wu welcomes U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi at Taipei Songshan Airport in Taipei, Taiwan August 2, 2022. - Taiwan Ministry of Foreign Affairs/Handout via REUTERS
Kes 1MDB: Siasatan SPRM dapati Najib lakukan kesalahan salah guna kuasa - Saksi
Siasatan SPRM mendapati elemen salah guna kuasa untuk dapatkan rasuah itu dikesan sewaktu pemeteraian perjanjian bersama Aabar PJS.
Rompin rekod bacaan IPU tidak sihat
Indeks Pencemar Udara (IPU) yang direkodkan pada 11 pagi tadi menunjukkan satu stesen mencatatkan kualiti udara pada tahap tidak sihat iaitu di Stesen Rompin, Pahang disebabkan kebakaran setempat.
Satya Nadella kongsi visi Microsoft dalam pembangunan AI bersama Agenda AWANI
Ketua Pengarang Astro AWANI, Ashwad Ismail berpeluang bertemu CEO Microsoft, Satya Nadella bagi memahami dengan lebih mendalam tentang agenda AI.
Kesan sampingan vaksin: KKM akan dapatkan penjelasan AstraZeneca
Kementerian Kesihatan (KKM) akan mendapatkan penjelasan daripada firma farmaseutikal AstraZeneca berhubung kesan sampingan vaksin COVID-19 seperti yang dilaporkan media antarabangsa baru-baru ini.
FIFA lulus penggunaan VAR di Liga Malaysia - FAM
Penggunaan teknologi Video Bantuan Pengadil (VAR) dalam saingan Liga Malaysia (Liga-M) bermula musim 2024/2025 sudah mendapat pengiktirafan dan kelulusan Persekutuan Bolasepak Antarabangsa (FIFA).
Niaga AWANI: AirAsia Cambodia mula penerbangan domestik pertama
AirAsia menghubungkan Kemboja dengan laluan antarabangsa dari hab Kuala Lumpur dan Bangkok dengan 63 penerbangan setiap minggu.
Niaga AWANI: Bukti Malaysia diiktiraf sebagai hab pilihan Asia Tenggara
Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz, berkata ini menunjukkan keyakinan Microsoft terhadap Asia Tenggara dan kedudukan strategik Malaysia sebagai pintu masuk untuk pertumbuhan.
Niaga AWANI: Perkhidmatan Skypark Link akan diaktifkan kembali - Anthony Loke
Beliau menjelaskan terminal itu diharap dapat menarik lebih ramai penumpang ke lapangan terbang kerana ia merupakan antara kawasan paling sesak di Lembah Klang.
Niaga AWANI: Pengambilalihan Affin Bank, Sarawak tunggu lampu hijau BNM
Proses pengambil alihan majoriti pegangan saham dalam Affin Bank oleh Kerajaan Sarawak berada di peringkat akhir untuk dimuktamadkan.
Niaga AWANI: Trafik udara berkembang 16.1 peratus pada suku pertama 2024
Trafik penumpang udara domestik serta antarabangsa masing-masing menyumbang 47.5 peratus dan 52.5 peratus daripada jumlah trafik penumpang udara suku tahunan.
Pelosi umum hasrat bertanding semula Kongres AS
Nancy Pelosi umum hasratnya untuk bertanding semula sebagai wakil California dalam Kongres pada penggal akan datang.
Hasrat AS jual AS$1.1 bilion senjata kepada Taiwan undang kemarahan China
Kedutaan China di Washington menggesa AS menarik balik tawaran itu atau berdepan "tindakan balas".
China akhiri latihan ketenteraan di sekitar Taiwan
China pada Rabu mengumumkan telah menyelesaikan latihan ketenteraannya yang dilancarkan minggu lepas di sekitar Taiwan, sebagai membantah lawatan Speaker Dewan Rakyat AS Nancy Pelosi ke pulau itu.
Konflik Taiwan-China: Latihan ketenteraan didakwa muslihat untuk ceroboh
Taiwan tidak akan gentar walaupun latihan berterusan China sering melanggar garis tengah tidak rasmi di selat negara itu.
Speaker Dewan AS Pelosi berlepas dari Jepun, lengkapkan siri lawatannya ke Asia
Speaker Dewan Perwakilan Amerika Syarikat Nancy Pelosi meninggalkan Jepun, sekali gus melengkapkan siri lawatannya ke negara-negara Asia.
Tokyo kesal Beijing batalkan mesyuarat dua hala menteri luar
Jepun kesal dengan keputusan China membatalkan rundingan dua hala yang sepatutnya diadakan sempena mesyuarat menteri-menteri luar ASEAN di Kemboja.
Ketegangan China-AS: Malaysia perlu proaktif desak penyelesaian aman - Penganalisis politik
Malaysia selaku anggota negara ASEAN perlu aktif menyuarakan desakan untuk satu penyelesaian secara aman dilakukan.
Ketegangan AS-China dijangka tidak beri kesan besar kepada Malaysia
Dasar berkecuali Malaysia dilihat dapat mengimbangi dan mengurangkan kesan kepada negara susulan ketegangan melibatkan dua kuasa besar itu.
ASEAN gesa redakan ketegangan di Selat Taiwan
Elak daripada melakukan sebarang provokasi atau mengambil tindakan yang boleh meningkatkan ketegangan, gesa ASEAN.
Ringgit menyusut disebabkan ketengangan geopolitik
Ringgit terus menyusut berbanding dolar US hari ini selepas pelabur memilih mata wang selamat susulan kebimbangan terhadap ketegangan geopolitik membabitkan Amerika Syarikat (AS)-China.