China Believes Biden Authorized Pelosi's Visit To Taiwan - Ambassador

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 17th August, 2022) Chinese ambassador to the United States Qin Gang said that he does not believe that the visit of US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan was not authorized by US President Joe Biden.

Biden accommodated Pelosi's trip because the US Congress "is not an independent, uncontrollable branch, according to international law," Qin said during a closed-door conference for US journalists, as cited by Axios news portal.

Washington should show restraint in its policy toward Taiwan otherwise there will be another round of tensions with China, Qin warned, according to Axios. He added that the one China principle should be the foundation of all US-China relations, without the respect of which no dialogue on climate change or nuclear issues is possible.

Taiwan must be reunited with mainland China peacefully if possible and by force if necessary, Qin told the press, adding that the possibility of a military reunification is only supposed to deter any separatism activity on the island.

China has repeatedly opposed visits of senior US officials to the island, as it considers Taiwan part of its territory and opposes any direct official foreign contacts with Taipei. The visit of US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to the island in early August triggered a new round of tensions in the Taiwan Strait and a wave of Chinese sanctions against Taiwan. Moreover, Beijing launched large-scale military exercises in the vicinity of the island, which included live-fire drills and military aircraft overflights close to Taiwan's airspace.

Taiwan became alienated from Beijing after becoming a stronghold of the Chinese Nationalist Party (the Kuomintang) that suffered defeat to the Communist Party in a civil war in 1949. The Chinese mainland and the island resumed business and informal contacts in the late 1980s.