Beijing warns US of ‘forceful’ reply to Taiwan visit by Pelosi

Name: China condemns Taiwan visit by EU delegation and travel plans by US House Speaker Pelosi
Uploaded: 2022-07-21T14:30:17.000Z
Duration: 2 min 48 s
Description: China condemns Taiwan visit by EU delegation and travel plans by US House Speaker Pelosi

Planned visit by US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi would ‘shake the political foundation of China-US relations’, Chinese foreign ministry says

The risk and cost would be huge, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences analyst warns

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US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is believed to be planning a trip to Taiwan, the first such visit by a high-ranking US official in 25 years. Photo: AP

Teddy NgandLawrence Chung

Published: 10:30pm, 21 Jul 2022Updated: 10:25am, 22 Jul 2022

Beijing will retaliate with “forceful measures” if US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi goes ahead with her trip to Taiwan, the Chinese foreign ministry warned on Thursday, as diplomatic observers said such a visit would derail US-China relations even if their leaders agreed to recalibrate bilateral ties.

The latest warning from Beijing came as US President Joe Biden said talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping were likely “within the next 10 days”, although any such plans may have been affected by Biden’s subsequent Covid-19 diagnosis. The two leaders last spoke at a virtual summit in March.

The talks would aim to manage increasing tensions between the two rival nations, but a Taiwan trip by Pelosi risks upending that mission, Chinese diplomatic observers warned.

02:48

China condemns Taiwan visit by EU delegation and travel plans by US House Speaker Pelosi

“All efforts to [maintain bilateral ties] will be in ruins if Pelosi goes ahead with the trip, no matter whether Xi and Biden have a good talk,” Lu Xiang, US-China expert at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS), said.

“The risk and cost would be huge, and it could possibly be a game changer.”

Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said Pelosi’s trip would be a serious violation of Beijing’s sovereignty and severely “shake the political foundation of China-US relations”.

“If the US insists on going its own way, China will take forceful measures to resolutely respond and counter it, and we will do what we say,” Wang said on Thursday.