House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's Asia trip has begun—and according to reports from CNN and the Wall Street Journal as well as Taiwanese media, it will include a stop in Taiwan. A source tells the Journal that people Pelosi plans to meet in Taiwan, including government officials, have been told that she will be visiting the island Tuesday and Wednesday despite stern warnings from China. China considers the self-governing democracy to be its own territory, and Xi Jinping recently warned President Biden about "playing with fire." CNN, citing a US government official, reports that Pentagon officials are monitoring Chinese movements in the region and are working on a plan to keep Pelosi safe.
On Monday, Pelosi and her delegation were in Singapore, where she met Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and other officials, the AP reports. According to Taiwanese media, she will travel to Taipei after a Tuesday visit to Malaysia, making her the highest-ranked US official to visit Taiwan since then-House Speaker Newt Gingrich in 1997. China has warned of "serious consequences" if the trip goes ahead, but White House national security spokesman John Kirby says there's "no reason" for the rhetoric. "There’s no reason for any actions to be taken," he said Monday. "It is not uncommon for congressional leaders to travel to Taiwan, it is very much in keeping with our policy and is consistent with our support to Taiwan under the Taiwan Relations Act."
"A Speaker of the House has visited Taiwan before without incident, as have many members of Congress over the years, including this year," said National Security Council spokeswoman Saloni Sharma. China's state-run Global Times, however, called the possible move a "provocation" in an editorial Monday and said America's "increasingly blatant besiege and containment against China is rapidly deteriorating China's peripheral environment." (More Taiwan stories.)
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