(Chris Parker, Headline USA) House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., just visited Taiwan in an effort to support the Taiwan Relations Act. She claimed it will commit the US to support the island nation during intensified tensions with China.
However, the Pentagon and White House aren’t entirely on board with her intentions, reported Just the News.
“We have repeatedly said that we oppose any unilateral changes to the status quo from either side. We have said that we do not support Taiwan independence,” said White House national security spokesman John Kirby during a press conference.
“We have said that we expect cross-straight differences to be resolved by peaceful means.”
However, Kirby also acknowledged the differences in the branches of government.
“We have been clear from the very beginning that she will make her own decisions, and that Congress is an independent branch of government,” he said of Pelosi.
“Our Constitution embeds a separation of powers. This is well known to the PRC, given our more than four decades of diplomatic relations. The speaker has the right to visit Taiwan, and the speaker of the House has visited Taiwan before, without incident, as have many members of Congress, including this year.”
China still insists that Taiwan is one of its territories. It views the visit from a leading US official as a threat to that claim, which prompted them to issue a warning ahead of Pelosi’s visit.
“The U.S. must not support Taiwan’s independence because those who play with fire will perish by it,” said one Chinese readout.
That readout was one of many that resulted from ongoing talks between the two nations’ presidents. In one, the Biden administration confirmed that it, like the Pentagon, doesn’t support Taiwan’s independence.
However, Pelosi has expressed support for Taiwan’s independence.
“We must stand by Taiwan, which is an island of resilience,” Pelosi said.
“This vibrant, robust democracy — named one of the freest in the world by Freedom House and proudly led by a woman, President Tsai Ing-wen — is under threat.”
