The United States Speaker of the House, Ms Nancy Pelosi, is currently on a high-profile trip to Asia, along with other members of Congress.
And while the group has so far visited Singapore and Malaysia and met with a number of dignitaries as well as plans to go to South Korea and Japan, it’s her trip to Taiwan that is drawing the most international attention.
Arriving in Singapore on Monday (Aug 1) Ms Pelosi’s first stop was with the US Marine Detachment in the country.
After that, in quick succession on the same day, she met with Finance Minister Lawrence Wong, President Halimah Yacob, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Foreign Affairs Minister Vivian Balakrishnan, Senior Ministers Tharman Shanmugaratnam and Teo Chee Hean, discussing a number of issues such as security, the climate crisis and economic growth.
She then went on to Malaysia, where she met with the Prime Minister and the Foreign Minister.
And on Aug 2 (Tuesday), the Speaker went to Taiwan. Ms Pelosi is the highest-ranking U.S. official to visit Taiwan in more than two decades.
Whether Ms Pelosi would proceed with the visit to Taiwan had been hotly debated, as Beijing had warned against it, characterizing it as a threat to China’s sovereignty.
President Xi Jinping made a phone call last week to US President Joseph Biden, telling him there would be unspecified countermeasures as a consequence of the visit.
In Taiwan, Ms Pelosi met with President Tsai Ing-wen as part of the US’ commitment not to abandon Taiwan.
“Forty-three years ago, America made a promise to always stand with Taiwan… today our delegation came to Taiwan to make it unequivocally clear we will not abandon our commitment to Taiwan,” she said.
She also called Taiwan an “inspiration to all freedom-loving people”, and said, “the world faces a choice between democracy and autocracy. America’s decision to preserve democracy here in Taiwan remains iron-clad.”
In turn, Ms Tsai said that Taiwan would remain a “trustworthy and reliable partner of the US”.
Ms Pelosi was awarded “the Order of Propitious Clouds with Special Grand Cordon,” which she called “a symbol of our treasured friendship.”
In a tweet, the US House Speaker wrote, “Make no mistake: America remains unwavering in our commitment to the people of Taiwan – now & for decades to come.”
Responses to Ms Pelosi’s visit have been mixed, receiving some praise and some censure for the gesture.
/TISG
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