Nancy Pelosi expects Taiwan trip to spur other foreign politicians to visit island
- The US House speaker says she hopes it is clear that Beijing cannot deter people from travelling, amid reports British MPs are planning a similar trip
- A forceful response from Beijing may deter future visits and some neighbouring states are already reluctant to seek confrontation, analysts say
“In terms of our visit here and if that would lead to other visits, I certainly hope so,” Pelosi said in Taipei on Wednesday.
“I just hope that it’s really clear that while China has stood in the way of Taiwan participating and going to certain meetings, that they understand that they will not stand in the way of people coming to Taiwan.”
On Tuesday Chinese ambassador to Britain Zheng Zeguang said there would be “severe consequences” if members of the House of Commons foreign affairs committee visited the island, following reports a trip was planned for November or December.
“Whether it is the so-called helping Taiwan defend itself or sending parliament members to Taiwan, [these actions] will seriously violate the one-China principle and the provisions of the Sino-British Joint Communique, and be seriously interfering in China’s internal affairs,” Zheng said. “The British are clear about this.”
Pelosi’s trip may particularly buoy Washington’s allies outside Asia to follow suit, according to Andy Mok, senior research fellow at the Centre for China and Globalisation, a leading non-governmental think tank in China.