Despite threats from China that its military “would not sit idly by” if she visits Taiwan, US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi is anticipated to do so on her trip to Asia.
Despite the fact that the destination is not on her public itinerary, senior Taiwanese government officials and a US official both confirmed to CNN that she is traveling there.
She is slated to arrive at an unspecified time, but the Taiwanese official said she would stay for one night.
According to CNN, the US official also said that members of the military department were putting together a strategy to ensure her safety.
Tensions with China, which regards Taiwan as one of its own regions, will increase as a result of the visit.
Chinese state media reported last week that if Pelosi’s plane entered their airspace while being escorted by a fighter jet, the government would be ready to shoot it down.
The most recent warning was made by Zhao Lijian, a spokesperson for the Chinese foreign ministry, who stated that Pelosi’s journey to Taiwan, which China claims as its own, would have “egregious political impact” given her position as the “No. 3 official of the US government”
In the wee hours of Monday morning, Pelosi began a tour of four Asian nations in Singapore amid heated rumors that she would incur the wrath of Beijing by also traveling to Taiwan, which is self-ruled.
Just before 4:30 a.m. local time, the House Speaker arrived in Singapore, where Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong asked her to work towards “stable” relations with Beijing.
Pelosi will travel to four Asian nations this week: Singapore, Malaysia, South Korea, and Japan, according to a news release issued by her office on Sunday.