Rush of fever between Beijing and Washington. China reacts to the visit of the chief of the American deputies, Nancy Pelosi, in Taiwan, promising “targeted military actions” by denouncing the “extremely dangerous” attitude of the United States. According to the official New China agency, Beijing summoned the American ambassador to China, Nicholas Burns, on Tuesday.
“The United States (…) is trying to use Taiwan to contain China,” said the Chinese Foreign Ministry in a statement, adding that Washington “continues to distort, obscure and deprive of all meaning the principle of one China, to intensify its official exchanges with Taiwan and to encourage the separatist activities “independence” of Taiwan. These actions, like playing with fire, are extremely dangerous.”
Taiwan then announced that more than 20 Chinese military aircraft entered the Taiwanese air defense identification zone. “21 Chinese military aircraft (…) entered the ADIZ (Air Defense Identification Zone, wider than airspace) in southwestern Taiwan on August 2, 2022,” it said in a statement. communicated on Twitter the Taiwanese Ministry of Defense.
“Unwavering” support from Washington
This visit is taking place despite warnings from China, which considers this visit as a serious provocation that could inflame already strained US-China relations. Live television footage showed Nancy Pelosi, 82, being greeted upon arrival by Joseph Wu, Taiwan’s foreign minister. She arrived at Songshan Airport aboard a US military plane and immediately said her visit to Taiwan showed the US’ “unconditional support” for the island.
For its part, the Taiwanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs believes that Nancy Pelosi shows Washington’s “unshakeable” support. “We believe President Pelosi’s visit (…) will strengthen the close and friendly relationship between Taiwan and the United States, and further deepen the overall cooperation between the two sides in all fields,” the ministry said.
Major Taunt
China considers Taiwan, with a population of around 23 million, to be one of its provinces, which it has yet to successfully reunify with the rest of its territory since the end of the Chinese Civil War ( 1949). Opposed to any initiative giving the Taiwanese authorities international legitimacy, Beijing is against any official contact between Taiwan and other countries.
US officials and parliamentarians regularly visit the island. But China considers a visit by Nancy Pelosi, one of the highest figures in the American state, to be a major provocation. Last week, during a telephone interview with US President Joe Biden, Chinese President Xi Jinping had already called on Americans not to “play with fire”.