Ed Markey (left) and Taiwan’s Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Yui
KYIV. UkraineGate. 15 . August .2022 l World News .
A delegation of U.S. lawmakers led by Senator Ed Markey arrived in Taiwan just 12 days after Nancy Pelosi’s trip. Their visit will last two days. Lawmakers will meet with Taiwanese officials and representatives of the private sector.
Details
A five-person delegation led by Senator Ed Markey (Democrat from Massachusetts) will meet with Taiwanese Chief of Staff Tsai Ing-wen, other officials, as well as private sector representatives, to discuss common interests, including reducing tensions in the Taiwan Strait and investing in semiconductors, the AP. The visit will last two days.
Context
Nancy Pelosi arrived for a one-day visit to Taiwan on August 2. She became the first speaker of the US House of Representatives in 25 years to visit an island whose independence Beijing does not recognize and considers one of the Chinese provinces.
The White House and Pelosi herself stressed that the trip did not mean a change in United States policy towards Taiwan. Beijing has sharply criticized such a visit, and after Pelosi’s departure, the Chinese army began previously announced air and naval military exercises in the area of the island. Taiwan’s Ministry of Defense called the Chinese maneuvers extremely provocative and announced the deployment of ground-based missile systems.
Beijing, following the visit of the American woman, partially suspended trade with Taiwan. The Chinese Foreign Ministry said that China was suspending cooperation with the United States in a number of areas, including on climate change, in the field of combating drugs, transnational crimes, legal assistance in criminal cases and the repatriation of illegal immigrants. As for Pelosi herself and her family members, China imposed sanctions, saying it had “interfered in China’s internal affairs” and violated the country’s “territorial integrity.”
Source: Ukrgate
