Dispute over Pelosi visit
China’s foreign minister threatens US with ‘punishment’
08/03/2022, 10:40 am
Beijing continues to react extremely aggressively to Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan. “Those who insult China will be punished,” says China’s foreign minister. Taiwan, in turn, accuses the country of wanting to invade sovereign waters during its maneuvers.
China has threatened the US with “punishment” over the visit of US leader Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan. Foreign Minister Wang Yi accused the US of disregarding Chinese sovereignty “under the guise of so-called ‘democracy'”. “Those who insult China will be punished,” Wang said on the sidelines of the ASEAN foreign ministers’ meeting. He described the visit of the US House of Representatives to Taiwan as a “farce”.
Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan overshadows the ASEAN meeting in the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh. Originally, the foreign ministers wanted to deal with the situation in Myanmar. Instead, their attention is now likely to be on Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and his US counterpart Antony Blinken, who wanted to discuss regional security with ASEAN officials in Phnom Penh.
Cambodia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Kung Phoak told journalists that the ASEAN bloc wanted to help ensure “that the situation in Taiwan remains stable, does not lead to a conflict and that political tensions between all parties concerned do not escalate”. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell also wanted to take part in the ASEAN meeting, which lasted several days.
Taiwan condemns Chinese maneuvers
Meanwhile, Taiwan has accused China of wanting to invade part of its planned military maneuvers in response to Pelosi’s visit. “Some of the areas of China’s drills are entering (Taiwan’s) territorial waters,” a spokesman for Taiwan’s defense ministry said at a news conference. “This is an irrational step to challenge the international order.”
China had reacted angrily to Pelosi’s visit and announced “targeted military action” in response. A series of military maneuvers in waters around Taiwan is planned. Among other things, long-range live ammunition is to be fired in the Taiwan Strait – the strait between Taiwan and mainland China.