Despite massive threats, US top politician Nancy Pelosi traveled to Taiwan a good two weeks ago. China then responded with a major military maneuver. Another US delegation is now visiting the island republic. They say they don't want to be afraid of intimidation.
A good ten days after the visit of US top politician Nancy Pelosi, another US Congress delegation has arrived in Taiwan for an unannounced visit. The delegation will meet with senior Taiwanese politicians to discuss bilateral relations, regional security, trade and investment, climate change and other important issues, the US institute in Taipei said.
The five-strong delegation, led by Ed Markey, will remain in Taiwan until Monday as part of "an extended visit to the Indo-Pacific region," it said.
According to the Taiwan Ministry of Foreign Affairs, meetings are planned with both President Tsai Ing-wen and Foreign Minister Joseph Wu. The ministry said in a statement that as China "further escalates tensions in the region," the US Congress has again sent a high-level delegation to visit Taiwan "to show a friendship that does not shy away from China's threats and fears intimidation".
The Chair of the US House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, also visited Taiwan as part of her trip to Asia a few weeks ago, despite massive threats from China. She saw her visit as a sign of solidarity with the island, which insists on independence and is claimed by China as its own national territory.
In response to Pelosi's visit to Taiwan, China held the largest military maneuvers in its history in the waters around Taiwan. Beijing regards the island as a breakaway territory that it wants to reunite with the mainland - if necessary using military force.
