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As Pelosi’s Taiwan visit rocks US-China ties, worse may be in store, analysts warn
- Relations between US and China are at their worst since the normalisation of relations in the late 1970s
- Tensions sparked by Pelosi visit expected to intensify, but G20 and Apec summits in November offer chance for a reset, observers note
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US-China relations are at their lowest point in half a century but worse may be in store before a reset seems possible, diplomatic observers said.
This comes as tensions continue to escalate over US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan, which Beijing sees as a violation of its sovereignty, with neither side wanting to be seen as backing down.
Beijing, which repeatedly warned against the visit, has responded with severe condemnation and days of live-fire drills around Taiwan, including dozens of incursions over the median line in the Taiwan Strait, a de facto boundary that it had hitherto honoured.
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Washington, meanwhile, has pledged to continue Taiwan Strait transits and freedom of navigation operations in the region, where it has prolonged the deployment of its USS Ronald Reagan carrier strike group.
02:48
Mainland China military exercises continue around Taiwan beyond announced deadline
Mainland China military exercises continue around Taiwan beyond announced deadline
“When we said China-US relations had reached rock bottom during the [Donald] Trump administration, we really misread it,” Lu Xiang, a specialist on US-China relations at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS), said.
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“The Pelosi incident is very damaging. China’s reaction will also continue. If there are further moves there will be further countermeasures.”
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