China is seriously upset with the upcoming visit of the president of taiwan to the United States, during which he will meet in California with the president of the House of Representatives, Kevin McCarthy. This meeting is seen from beijing as American interference in their internal affairs. It should be remembered that China considers Taiwan as part of its sovereign territory.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry has urged Washington to clarify whether there will be a meeting between President Tsai Ing-wen and McCarthy. The head of government of Taiwan plans to make a stopover in the United States on her trip to visit various Central American countries. Taiwanese media have reported that Tsai may travel to the US in May or June to give a speech at Cornell University.
In August of last year, the visit of Nancy Pelosi, then holding McCarthy’s position today, sparked an escalation of diplomatic tension between Washington and Beijing, whose government launched several missiles and mobilized the People’s Liberation Army in protest. McCarthy has said he wants to visit Taiwan and asserted that China will not condition its movements: “They can’t tell me where I can or can’t go.” The Chinese authorities have expressed their rejection in this regard and have said they are “deeply concerned.” “China strongly opposes any official exchange between Taiwan and the United States,” Defense Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said.
In the US, the question that many analysts ask is what Beijing’s response will be like if the Taiwanese president meets with the “speaker” of the House of Representatives, the third most important position in the structure of the country. In 1995, when the then President of Taiwan, Lee Teng-huivisited the US, the People’s Liberation Army launched four ballistic missiles in Taiwanese waters and one more in March 1996. But only the first missile hit its target as the US turned off the GPS that China was using at the time, explains Jeff Pao in Asian Times.
Taiwan’s defense ministerChiu Kuo-cheng, said Monday that the Taiwanese military will open fire if the Chinese military enters areas within 12 nautical miles of the island’s shores. “It would not be the first time that a Taiwanese leader has visited the US and the PLA has responded by launching military exercises,” writes Tian Liu, a mainland China-based military columnist. “If Tsai insists on going, the mainland will give a much stronger response.”
The new Chinese foreign minister this week issued a new warning to the US for its diplomatic relations with the island and recalled that mismanagement of the Taiwan issue will shake the very foundations of relations between China and the United States while threatening to Washington to prevent the independence of Taiwan if it really hopes to maintain peace in the region of the strait that separates both territories. “In the meantime, we reserve the option to take all necessary measures,” he added. Qin Gang.