US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy has officially confirmed plans to meet with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen. China said it would “take firm action” in relation to the meeting between the two. Tensions in the Taiwan Strait, which had been heightened since the visit of then-US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan last year, are expected to rise once more.
US House Speaker McCarthy’s office announced on the 5th (current time) that he would preside over a bipartisan meeting with Taiwan’s president at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Los Angeles, Archyde.com and others reported on the 3rd. President Tsai is currently on tour to Guatemala and Belize, which have diplomatic relations with Central America following passing through the United States. On his way home, he will stop by Los Angeles, USA, and give a speech at the Reagan Library at the invitation of the ‘Ronald Reagan Foundation and Institute’. There were reports that a meeting with Chairman McCarthy would take place here, but the two sides did not officially confirm the meeting plan. President Tsai previously met Hakim Jeffries, the Democratic Party’s floor leader, while passing through New York on his Central American tour on the 30th of last month.
China, which conducted extensive military drills in the form of encircling Taiwan last year when then-US House Speaker Pelosi visited Taiwan, is likely to continue its armed demonstration this time as well. At a regular briefing on the 3rd, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Mao Ning was asked regarding plans for a meeting between Chairman McCarthy and President Tsai. “US legislators must abide by the one-China principle and do not send the wrong signal to the forces of ‘Taiwan independence’ to avoid harming China-US relations and peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait,” he said. “China will take resolute measures to safeguard its sovereignty and territorial integrity,” he said.
Chinese state media warned once morest the planned meeting between Chairman McCarthy and President Tsai in an even stronger tone. The official Global Times said that the meeting between the two would bring uncertainty to the US-China relationship. ” claimed. At the same time, quoting an anonymous expert, “Since the visit schedule has not yet been completed, we must pay attention to what will happen in the future.” You will be able to see it following finishing all of them.” It is interpreted as meaning that the People’s Liberation Army will decide the level of response depending on the outcome of the meeting between the two sides.
Around the same time, the visit of the US House Foreign Relations Committee delegation led by Chairman Michael McCall to Taiwan is also expected to stimulate China. Chairman McCall will visit Taiwan on the 6th with eight members of the Foreign Relations Committee, including Chairman Young Kim of the Indo-Pacific Subcommittee. They will also meet with President Tsai, who is returning from the United States. Ahead of the visit, Chairman McCall said, “We face the threat of the Chinese Communist Party, and the Indo-Pacific is our first line of defense once morest their aggression.” It is more important than ever.”
