Pelosi delegation begins trip to Asia- Singapore, Malaysia, South Korea, Japan
Anjali Sharma
GG News Bureau
WASHINGTON, 1st August. – US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and her delegation on Sunday confirmed planned visit to Asia, which includes Singapore, Malaysia, South Korea, Japan but did not mention whether she will make a stop in Taiwan, according to a statement issued by her office.
Pelosi said “Today, our Congressional delegation travels to the Indo-Pacific to reaffirm America’s strong and unshakeable commitment to our allies and friends in the region.”.
The statement said that “In Singapore, Malaysia, South Korea and Japan, our delegation will hold high-level meetings to discuss how we can further advance our shared interests and values, including peace and security, economic growth and trade, the COVID-19 pandemic, the climate crisis, human rights and democratic governance.”
According to her press release, it left open the possibility that she still might visit Taiwan, something that has been the subject of much political debate in recent days in both the United States and Asia.
China regards Taiwan as an integral part of its territory.
Pelosi’s intention to visit Taiwan has also created political uproar for the White House
President Biden said that “The military thinks it’s not a good idea right now,” of proposed Pelosi trip to Taipei..
Pelosi has long been a critic of China for its record on human rights.
She showed up in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square in 1991 with a banner that paid tribute to dissidents who were murdered in pro-democracy protests there two years earlier.
Chinese authorities briefly detained her, along with then Reps. Ben Jones (D-Ga.) and John Miller (R-Wash.) over their protest.
“Tiananmen Square is a magnet for us. There is no way we could come here without being drawn to the square,” Pelosi said at the time.
China has considered Taiwan part of its territory since Mao Zedong established a communist state on the mainland in 1949 and nationalists led by Chiang Kai-shek fled to Taiwan.
United States did not recognize the mainland’s government until the 1970s; since then, American governments have had awkward, indirect relationships with Taiwan
Pelosi said she was traveling with Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.), Rep. Mark Takano (D-Calif.), Rep. Suzan DelBene (D-Wash.), Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.) and Rep. Andy Kim (D-N.J.) in her statement released by her office.
Pelosi’s office released the planned trip to Asia. The itinerary lists at least four spots—Singapore, Malaysia, South Korea, and Japan—but most anticipated nation Taiwan is left out.
Pelosi planned to visit Taiwan initially sparked controversy. Chinese officials made various threats, said that it would “not sit idly by” should she visit the island.\\White House repeatedly said it is against any sweeping changes to current relations and status quo, discouraged Pelosi from visiting Taiwan though some lawmakers from both parties urged her to visit. Pelosi left for the Indo-Pacific on Sunday with a group of five Democrats, never confirmed nor denied the reports whether or not Taiwan is on her itinerary. That remains a mystery.
Taiwan has increased its military preparedness as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has prompted fears about a potential Chinese attack.
Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo hit back on Biden administration for not supporting Pelosi’s trip to Taiwan.
Pompeo told host John Catsimatidis on WABC 77 AM’s “Cats Roundtable, “To allow America to be bullied by Chinese propaganda, right after, frankly, President Biden has had a phone call, a long phone call, with [Chinese President] Xi Jinping would send a really bad message to our friends in the region: the Australians, the South Koreans, the Japanese,”
“I don’t agree with Speaker Pelosi very often, but she made it clear that she wanted to go visit, on her own, to visit Taiwan, an independent, sovereign nation. And now, the Biden administration is saying, ‘Well, maybe that’s not smart,” Pompeo said.
China warned that the trip could “have a severe negative impact on the political foundation of China-US relations, and send a gravely wrong signal to ‘Taiwan independence’ separatist forces.”
Under the Taiwan Relations Act of 1979, the U.S. is committed to helping self-governed Taiwan defend itself against Beijing, but the US has remained strategically ambiguous about its position on Taiwan, which China claims as its own territory.
Comments are closed.