– This is a complete farce. The United States is violating China’s sovereignty under the guise of so-called “democracy”. Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on the sidelines of the ASEAN meeting on Wednesday that whoever insults China will be punished.
This was reported by Chinese state media.
Pelosi landed Tuesday night in Taiwan, which China claims. The visit elicited strong reactions from the Chinese side, and concern over the growing unrest in the region.
For her part, Pelosi said during the visit that she and other members of Congress would not turn their backs on their commitments to the island.
The world today faces a choice between democracy and authoritarianism. In a brief speech during a meeting with Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen, Pelosi said America’s determination to preserve democracy, here in Taiwan and around the world, remains steadfast.
Commitment: Pelosi pledged that neither she nor other members of Congress would disregard their commitments to Taiwan. Photo: AP/NTB
“Our delegation came to Taiwan to make it unequivocally clear that we will not turn our backs on our commitments to Taiwan,” Pelosi continued.
China, which considers Taiwan its territory, responded forcefully to the visit and, after Pelosi’s delegation arrived in Taipei, launched several military exercises around the island.
Interactions
During the meeting, President Tsai Pelosi thanked for her commitment and awarded her the Medal of Honor.
Taiwan will not back down in the face of growing military threats. Tsai said: We will continue to perform our sovereignty and will continue to adhere to the line of defense of democracy.
The president considers Taiwan an independent country, which has prompted China to increase pressure on the island since taking power in 2016.
On Wednesday, China also imposed new restrictions on the import of citrus fruits and fish from Taiwan, in addition to stopping shipments of sand to the island.
Reactions: China has responded forcefully to the fact that a senior congressman has chosen to visit Taiwan. Photo: AP/NTB
China justifies the restrictions in, among other things, the alleged results of excess pesticide residues.
military exercises
Tsai describes China’s military exercises in the wake of Pellose’s visit as an unnecessary reaction. The island’s Defense Ministry said that, on Tuesday evening, 21 Chinese military aircraft violated Taiwan’s airspace.
Eighteen of these were said to be combat aircraft, two of which were transport aircraft while the last was a warning and control aircraft.
Taiwan’s Ministry of Defense described China’s actions as psychological warfare and directed Taiwanese not to believe the rumors and to report the fake news to the authorities.
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