Foreign minister strongly protests Speaker Pelosi’s trip to Taiwan.
A Chinese government official summoned America’s Ambassador to China Nicholas Burns for a meeting on Tuesday regarding the trip to Taiwan taken by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Xie Feng was instructed to demand an “emergency meeting” with Ambassador Burns to lodge “strong protests” about the speaker’s trip on Tuesday to the island nation of roughly 24 million people who have declared their independence from mainland China.
A State Department spokesman said, “We are in touch with PRC counterparts. Our ambassador in Beijing met with the PRC vice foreign minister, who lodged a formal protest.”
The two governments expressed disagreement over whether Speaker Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan violates the United States’ support of the one-China policy and the provisions of the three China-U.S. joint communiques.
“[Pelosi’s] trip is fully consistent with our one-China policy, which is based on the Taiwan Relations Act, Three Communiques, and Six Assurances. That policy has not changed. Ambassador Burns also reiterated that the United States will not escalate and stands ready to work with China to prevent escalation altogether,” the State Department official added. “He also pledged the United States’ intent to keep lines of communication open.”
Speaker Pelosi departed Taiwan on Wednesday after a two-day stop that included a meeting with Taiwan’s president. The House speaker portrayed her high-profile trip as part of a U.S. obligation to stand with democracies against autocratic countries, and with democratic Taiwan against China.
As the Lord Leads, Pray with Us…
- For the safety of Americans in China as that nation expresses displeasure at the speaker’s travel to Taiwan.
- For discernment for Ambassador Burns as he interacts with Chinese ministers.
- For wisdom for U.S. federal officials in the executive and legislative branches as they address concerns about China.
Sources: Washington Examiner, New York Times, VOA
