TENSE TRIP
Nancy Pelosi lands in Taiwan after flight-tracking sparks concerns for Speaker’s safety and WW3 fears peak
NANCY Pelosi has landed in Taiwan, defying repeated Chinese threats as World War III fears peak.
Pelosi landed at Taipei's Songshan Airport at around 10.45pm local time on Tuesday, becoming the highest-ranking American official to visit the Asian country in 25 years.
10
10
10
10
10
The House Speaker and her delegation disembarked the US Air Force plane and were greeted by Taiwan's foreign minister Joseph Wu and Sandra Oudkrik, the top US representative in Taiwan.
The world is now bracing for China's response after Chinese leader Xi Jinping warned US President Joe Biden during a call last week that "whoever plays with fire will get burnt" if they allow Pelosi to land in Taiwan.
China has repeatedly warned Pelosi not to make the trip, while the US has warned Beijing not to turn the moment into a military crisis.
“There is no reason for Beijing to turn a potential visit consistent with longstanding US policy into some sort of crisis or conflict, or use it as a pretext to increase aggressive military activity in or around the Taiwan Strait,” John Kirby, a National Security Council spokesman, told reporters on Monday.
Read more on Pelosi's visit
On Tuesday, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said they would "closely follow Pelosi's itinerary" and take "firm and powerful measures to safeguard China's sovereignty".
"We closely follow Pelosi’s itinerary. If the US insists on going its own way, China will take firm and powerful measures to safeguard China’s sovereignty and security interests," spokesperson Hua Chunying said.
The sharp warning came a day after the Foreign Ministry said that the People’s Liberation Army “won’t sit idly by” if Pelosi lands in their backyard.
Beijing is furious and has threatened to take action as it accuses the US of provoking them over the breakaway island, which the Communist Party has long claimed belongs to China.
Most read in The US Sun
The US Speaker of the House is the second-in-line to the presidency, behind only Vice President Kamala Harris.
President Biden has publicly said that the US military has advised against Pelosi's visit to Taiwan amid escalating tension between the two nations.
Republicans, though, have encouraged the speaker to proceed.
Upon her arrival, Pelosi said her discussions with Taiwan leadership will focus on "advancing a free and open Indo-Pacific region".
"Our Congressional delegation’s visit to Taiwan honors America’s unwavering commitment to supporting Taiwan’s vibrant Democracy," the House Speaker said in a statement.
"Our visit is part of our broader trip to the Indo-Pacific — including Singapore, Malaysia, South Korea and Japan — focused on mutual security, economic partnership and democratic governance.
"Our discussions with Taiwan leadership will focus on reaffirming our support for our partner and on promoting our shared interests, including advancing a free and open Indo-Pacific region.
"America’s solidarity with the 23 million people of Taiwan is more important today than ever, as the world faces a choice between autocracy and democracy."
On Tuesday night, Taiwan's tallest building, Taipei 101, lit up with messages including: "Welcome to Taiwan", "Speaker Pelosi", and "Taiwan (heart) USA".
CHINA'S SHOW OF STRENGTH
According to Chinese media outlets, China's Defense Ministry is on high alert and will launch a series of targeted military operations as a countermeasure to Pelosi's visit to Taiwan.
“The Chinese People’s Liberation Army is on high alert and will launch a series of targeted military operations to counter this, resolutely defend national sovereignty and territorial integrity, and resolutely thwart external interference and ‘Taiwan independence’ separatist attempts,” spokesman Wu Qian said in a statement.
At least two Chinese warships - a destroyer and a frigate - have been seen lurking off the island and Chinese warplanes have buzzed close to the dividing line in the Taiwan Strait.
And chilling footage shared on Chinese social network Weibo appears to show a column of amphibious tanks reportedly massing on beaches in Fujian along the Taiwan Strait.
Other footage shows a large amount of military equipment on the move in the province, including tanks on trains and columns of vehicles gridlocking Xiamen.
The closest point between China and Taiwan is the Kinmen Islands, around six miles east of Xiamen.
Just an hour before Pelosi landed, China deployed two aircraft carriers- Shandong and Liaoning - to sea in an unprecedented show of strength.
Shandong and Liaoning are both around 60,000 tons and can carry dozens of warplanes and helicopters.
The two carriers are the lynchpin around which China is building its navy - and are seen as a symbol of national pride in Beijing.
10
10
10
10
10
Amid the escalating tension between the two powerhouse nations, four American warships, including the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan, were positioned in waters east of Taiwan on "routine" deployments.
It is understood the US military aircraft is taking a wide flight path to avoid flying over the heavily militarised South China Sea.
The carrier USS Ronald Reagan transited the South China Sea and was currently in the Philippines Sea, east of Taiwan and the Philippines and south of Japan, a US Navy official told Reuters on Tuesday.
The Japan-based Reagan is operating with a guided missile cruiser, USS Antietam, and a destroyer, USS Higgins.
“While they are able to respond to any eventuality, these are normal, routine deployments,” the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said.
FLIGHT-TRACKING WEBSITES CRASH
Meanwhile, Pelosi's controversial trip has sent flight-tracking websites crashing as thousands of people monitor her trip and to see for themselves if she would indeed head to Taiwan.
Flightradar24, the plane tracking website, went down Tuesday morning amid an increased interest in Pelosi's flight path.
Just before the outage, Flightradar24’s website had highlighted the interest in the plane believed to be boarded by Pelosi, noting that it was the most followed flight on the site - watched by 300,000 people.
"Because of unprecedented sustained tracking interest in SPAR19, Flightradar24 services are under extremely heavy load," the company said on Twitter.
RUSSIA BACKS CHINA
On Tuesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s press secretary Dmitry Peskov accused the US of "provoking" China.
"We can now state unequivocally, whether she makes it there or not, everything about this tour and the possible visit to Taiwan has provocative character," Peskov told Russian reporters.
"Russia has absolute solidarity with China."
While Pelosi meets with Taiwan leaders, her husband will appear in court more than 6,000 miles away in California on Wednesday after he was arrested on DUI charges in May.
Read More on The US Sun
Read More on The US Sun
Paul Pelosi was arrested on May 28 after a man driving a 2014 Jeep crashed into Pelosi’s Porsche as he left for his and his wife’s vineyard after attending a dinner party.
The Speaker of the House's husband's blood alcohol level was higher than .08 percent.