Pelosi’s talk of Taiwan trip draws criticism
Analysts see reckless behavior from top US lawmaker in provoking China
Political observers around the world consider a potential visit to Taiwan by US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi to be a provocation of China.
The California Democrat kicked off her controversial tour of Asian nations on Sunday, although a stop in Taiwan was not listed on the official agenda.
Pelosi said in a statement on Sunday that she is leading a US congressional delegation to Singapore, Malaysia, South Korea and Japan to discuss trade, the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, security and “democratic governance”.
Edward Luce, the US national editor for the Financial Times of London, wrote on July 22 that Pelosi “is second in succession to the US presidency and belongs to the same party as the president. Protestations of US constitutional niceties — that Congress is separate to the executive — ring hollow in this context.
“Pelosi may think she is acting on principle. She is in fact exhibiting the exorbitant irresponsibility of the US legislator — power without responsibility; the self-indulgence of a figure whose job it has never been to pick up the geopolitical pieces,” Luce wrote.
In an article on July 22 on the Substack website, historian Daniel Larison wrote: “China hawks keep saying that US officials should be able to go wherever they please, but on this issue that rule makes little sense. Top US officials typically don’t go to Taiwan precisely because it antagonizes the Chinese government for no purpose.
“What is gained if the speaker visits Taiwan only to worsen bilateral tensions and sabotage any possibility of US-Chinese cooperation on other issues?” wrote Larison, who holds a PhD in history from the University of Chicago and is a contributing editor at the Antiwar website.
“The US can ill afford to provoke a crisis with another major power, and (US President Joe) Biden needs to shut this proposed visit down before it turns into something truly dangerous.”
In another article on July 22, for the Responsible Statecraft website, Larison wrote: “Managing US-Chinese relations is one of the most important foreign policy tasks that our government has, and it is damaging for both countries and for the region when the relationship is managed in such a confused and slapdash way.”
In a phone call with Biden on Thursday, President Xi Jinping said China firmly opposes separatist moves toward “Taiwan independence” and interference by external forces and never allows any room for “Taiwan independence” forces in whatever form.
‘Bad idea’
In a July 20 post on Twitter, Michael Swaine, the director of the East Asia Program at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, said: “Pelosi visiting Taiwan is such a bad idea it’s hard to know where to begin in criticizing it. … There is no upside to such a visit and only downsides.”
Tom Watkins, president and chief executive of TDW and Associates, a business and education consultant in the US and China, told China Daily that Pelosi’s proposed trip to Taiwan poses major risks.
“This is one time she should listen to the US military,” said Watkins, referring to the Pentagon’s reported misgivings over a trip to the island.
“In life, timing is everything, and given the tensions between our two great nations, this visit is viewed by Beijing as a strategic-level provocation.”
Shelley Rigger, a political science professor at Davidson College and a leading expert on Taiwan, wrote in a July 28 article on Responsible Statecraft: “What they’re (Chinese officials) seeing is that the US is sending the number three in their national hierarchy to Taiwan. How is this not a statement or an affirmation of Taiwan statehood? Politicians don’t appreciate the gravity and the risk of messing around in this policy area.”
Danny Haiphong, a journalist at Black Agenda Report, wrote on Twitter: “China cherishes sovereignty and won’t be pushed around. Pelosi is making a reckless miscalculation that is nothing short of warmongering.”