House Speaker Nancy Pelosi will reportedly visit Taiwan on her current Asia trip despite repeated threats from China.
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According to CNN, citing a senior Taiwanese government official and a U.S. official, Pelosi was set for an overnight stay in Taiwan Tuesday.
She landed in Singapore early Monday morning to meet with President Halimah Yacob, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, and several Cabinet Ministers, according to a spokesperson for Singapore’s foreign ministry.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian warned that the People’s Liberation Army said they “won’t sit idly by” if Pelosi enters Taiwan.
“Her stature as the No. 3 US official means a trip would be highly sensitive,” Zhao said at a Beijing press briefing. “As to what measures, let’s wait and see whether she insists on this visit”.
Pelosi’s office said Sunday that she would be visiting Singapore, Malaysia, South Korea and Japan. Although Taiwan was not mentioned, it was not ruled out as part of the itinerary.
Last week, Chinese President Xi Jinping warned President Biden during a phone call not to express support for Taiwan’s independence, reported the New York Post.
On Friday, a columnist at China’s state-controlled Global Times newspaper suggested the country’s military could shoot down Pelosi’s plane if she tried to enter Taiwanese airspace with a fighter jet escort.
Pelosi would be the most senior official to visit Taiwan since former House Speaker Newt Gingrich traveled to the country in 1997.
The People’s Liberation Army also posted a video Monday on WeChat, a Chinese instant messaging and social media app, of soldiers, tanks and missiles.
According to the Global Times, the 80th Group Army posted a message on social media saying “We must bear in mind the fundamental responsibility of preparing for war and charge on the journey of a strong army”.
