Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan

As the war in Ukraine continues, there is one other hotspot the world is also watching as it may lead to armed conflict. Last Tuesday, US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's plane flew from Malaysia, turned north, and confirmed it was headed for Taiwan. Many people watched the plane via real-time websites that could track the flight. The plane flew through the eastern part of the Philippines instead of passing through the shorter route via the South China Sea to avoid any untoward actions from China. China constantly threatened if Pelosi went ahead with the visit to Taiwan, Taiwan would be held responsible and US-China relations would worsen. President Xi Jinping said the Chinese military “would not sit idly by”. Videos of China positioning military equipment on the shores facing Taiwan made the rounds on social media, bluster and all.

Pelosi's visit was the first by a sitting US House speaker in 25 years. The last to visit was Newt Gingrich in 1997. China does not recognize the independence of Taiwan, a strong ally of America. Pelosi's visit seems to be a message that their relationship is strong, America's commitment to Taiwan will continue, and that it will not be abandoned if the need arises. We know China has been itching to take back what it considers a “rogue state”.

There are American warships patrolling the South China Sea to protect Pelosi's trip and anything else that might go wrong due to the visit. Some Chinese warplanes flew over the Taiwan Strait, so America also flew their fighters from Japan. This was the scenario that played out Tuesday night. A sort of chess game involving two powerful militaries.

Pelosi has already left Taiwan and is headed to South Korea. China is now conducting live-fire exercises all around Taiwan. Intimidation, if you ask me. China President Xi Jinping seems to have been incensed by Pelosi's visit. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov called Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan an “annoyance”. And what should we call Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Minister Lavrov? China has taken no action against the US despite the serious threats to them. I don't believe China will start a war with Taiwan knowing America would come to the defense of the small country. But we don’t know what is going on in the mind of President Xi. He may emulate Vladimir Putin, another authoritarian leader. Two countries with powerful autocratic leaders who should be obeyed at all times. Xi may have delusions of grandeur and see himself as the president who took back Taiwan, but not without a massive fight, if I may say so.