United States House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Wednesday said her visit to Taiwan should be seen as a strong statement that America stands with the country and that China cannot prevent world leaders to visit the island.
Pelosi’s statement came amid reports that 27 Chinese military aircraft entered Taiwan’s air defence zone hours after she left Taipei following a high-stakes visit that has spiked tensions in the Taiwan Strait.
“Sadly, Taiwan has been prevented from participating in global meetings, most recently the World Health Organisation, because of objections by the Chinese Communist Party,” Pelosi said in statement.
“While they may prevent Taiwan from sending its leaders to global forums, they cannot prevent world leaders or anyone from traveling to Taiwan to pay respect to its flourishing Democracy, to highlight its many successes and to reaffirm our commitment to continued collaboration.”
China further demonstrated its outrage over the visit to the island in 25 years with a burst of military activity in surrounding waters, summoning the US ambassador in Beijing and halting several agricultural imports from Taiwan.
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