The next prime minister of Singapore expressed concern that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan has set the U.S.-China relationship on a “very troubling” trajectory and expressed concern that if no action is taken to deescalate, the two countries may “sleepwalk into conflict.”
According to Lawrence Wong, tensions have risen since the visit, according to a Bloomberg interview.
And that’s the danger: “We’re beginning to witness a sequence of choices being made by both governments that will push us into more perilous area.”
Wong now serves as both the finance minister and deputy prime minister. Concerning a possible clash in the Taiwan Strait or the South China Sea, where China has been stepping up its military exercises, he stated his worries.
In 2001, an American surveillance aircraft collided with a Chinese fighter and was forced to make an emergency landing on China’s Hainan Island.
He warned that there may be “accidents” with both sides exhibiting a show of force in the area. When the United States apologised, China freed the crew.
Two weeks ago, Pelosi and a group of Democratic lawmakers travelled to Taiwan, defying the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), which vehemently objected to the visit as an American intrusion on its territory.
Beijing warned against the visit, saying: “Those who dabble with fire get burnt.”]
Prior to her arrival in Taiwan as part of her Asian tour, Pelosi had been to Singapore.
The speaker was the highest-ranking member of the American government to visit Taiwan in 25 years, and China saw her trip as an insult on the part of the Biden administration.
The White House of Vice President Biden opposed the travel.
No one intentionally chooses to engage in combat, but we sleepwalk into war, Wong added. “And that’s the greatest issue and risk,” was said.
A second group of Congressmen, headed by Sen. Ed Markey, D-Conn., has visited Taiwan since Pelosi and her team left.
Democratic Representatives Alan Lowenthal, John Garamendi, and Don Beyer of California, as well as Republican Delegate to American Samoa Aumua Amata, join Markey in the tiny group.
Their presence at this time is of considerable importance since the Chinese military drill is (designed) to discourage U.S. legislators from visiting Taiwan, according to Lo, Chih-Cheng, head of the legislature’s Foreign and National Defense Committee, who met with the American lawmakers in Taipei.
Their current visit demonstrates that China cannot prevent lawmakers from any nation from travelling to Taiwan, and it also sends a clear statement that Americans support the Taiwanese people, according to Lo.
China has said that it intends to regain control of Taiwan by peaceful methods, but that all alternatives are “on the table.”
Since then, Beijing has sent missiles, warships, and fighter jets into the waters and the skies over Taiwan.
Chinese authorities allegedly launched 17 fighter planes beyond the Taiwan Strait’s median line last week, according to Taiwanese officials.
For decades, both sides have been aware that crossing the median line would result in a significant escalation. Last week, Taiwan also began conducting its own anti-invasion exercises.
In the meanwhile, it was revealed on Tuesday that the United States successfully conducted an intercontinental ballistic missile test of the Minuteman III, which had been postponed to prevent worsening tensions with Beijing amid China’s display of force near Taiwan earlier this month.
Following the launch early on Tuesday, Air Force Global Strike Command said that the test demonstrated “the preparedness of US nuclear forces and offer confidence in the lethality and efficacy of the nation’s nuclear deterrent.”
Officials verified that the re-entry vehicle for the Minuteman III flew 4,200 miles from Vandenberg Space Force Base in the Santa Barbara region of California to Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands.
Intercontinental ballistic missiles are mainly developed for the delivery of nuclear bombs and have a range of up to 9,300 miles.
They were initially used in the US in 1959 and have since grown to be an essential component of the country’s nuclear arsenal.
Pelosi defended her travel last week in the face of criticism.
At a press conference, Pelosi, who was accompanied by members of the congressional delegation, said, “We will not allow China to isolate Taiwan.”
They aren’t preventing us from travelling to Taiwan, Saluting this vibrant democracy was our goal.
They claim that we are attempting to cause friction, but the Taiwan Relations Act of 1979 defined the parameters of our relationship, not the other way around.
There is no deviation from that, she continued.
The Taiwan Relations Act established an unofficial diplomatic and commercial route between the United States and Taiwan, marking the beginning of the United States’ strategy of strategic ambiguity.
The “One China concept” was accepted, but neither it was praised nor condemned.
Although the PRC has been advised not to attack Taiwan, the U.S. has not openly said if it would do so.
Additionally, Pelosi told reporters that she does not “remember” being instructed not to visit Taiwan by the military.
The military believes it’s not a good idea, Biden told reporters before to the trip.