New York Times: Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan, a “minefield” for Washington

According to IRNA’s Sunday report, quoted by the New York Times newspaper, Taiwan, an island with a population of 23 million people located 80 miles (128 km) off the coast of China, has long been a center of tension between Washington and Beijing. The tension that has now reached its peak.

Speaker of the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, who started a trip to several Asian countries on Saturday and may also stop in Taiwan, is the highest American official to visit this island since 1997.

The New York Times said in its article: China considers Taiwan a part of its territory and has promised to take it back if forced to use force. Chinese President Xi Jinping strongly warned Washington in a phone call with his American counterpart Joe Biden on Thursday for interfering in the conflict. Beijing objects to Pelosi’s possible visit and has warned the United States of its uncertain consequences.

According to the article in this media, the main reason for Washington’s sensitivity on Taiwan is that this island is the leading producer of semiconductors in the world, but on the other hand, it is also vulnerable to Beijing’s growing economic pressures.

Last month, Chinese Defense Minister General Wei Fenghe warned at an international meeting in Singapore that China does not hesitate to go to war for Taiwan. In this meeting, he emphasized: “If someone dares to separate Taiwan, we will not hesitate to go to war and we will pay the price until the end.”

“William H. Everholt”, a senior researcher at Kennedy School of Harvard, recently wrote in an article: China desperately wants Taiwan’s “return”, but this does not mean that Beijing wants a bloody war that will destroy its economy.

This newspaper adds: Observation of recent movements shows that Taiwan is the biggest turning point in US-China relations. China’s attacks on Taiwan’s airspace and waters have become more aggressive in recent years, raising the risk of conflict.

Last year, Chinese military aircraft invaded Taiwan’s airspace repeatedly and in an increasing manner, leading some American analysts to believe that China’s military capabilities have grown to such an extent that an American victory in a possible war is no longer guaranteed.

According to analysts, Taiwan is a political minefield for Washington.

Reports suggest that the government must have tried hard to dissuade Pelosi from the trip, but the Speaker of the House of Representatives insists that as an official she has the right to go wherever she wants.

Earlier, in response to a reporter’s question about why his government opposed this trip, Biden said that the military thinks this trip is not a good idea at the moment.