Gresford’s article is translated as follows:
The military impact of US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan stretched from Beijing to Taipei and from Tokyo to Washington.
Referring to her recent visit to Taipei, Pelosi vowed that China will not be able to isolate Taiwan. She also scorned the Chinese Communist Party, saying Beijing does not have the power to decide who can and cannot visit the island nation, nor can Beijing set a timetable for the U.S. government to visit.
China has responded to Pelosi’s visit with days of live-fire drills and large-scale military exercises — a show of force designed to intimidate Taiwan and its allies. The communist army crossed the central line of the Taiwan Strait and invaded Taiwan waters, launched missiles, and dispatched more than 200 military aircraft and more than 50 warships to the region.
The Chinese navy said in a press statement that it is focused on anti-submarine warfare and maritime attack. The CCP is conducting submarine warfare training because Taiwan’s defense relies heavily on the coordination of submarine fleets between the United States, Taiwan, Japan and Australia.
During the exercise, the communist army simulated attacking Taiwan from six sides. CCTV, the mouthpiece of the CCP, announced on August 7 that the CCP’s military will conduct regular training missions across the Taiwan Strait.
In addition to the show of military firepower, Beijing announced eight countermeasures in retaliation for Pelosi’s visit, including canceling bilateral climate talks with Washington and three military dialogue mechanisms. The talks are considered crucial to preventing tensions from escalating and maintaining peace in the region. Tensions are higher now than at any time in decades, and communication is even more important. The cancellation of the talks itself appears to be an escalation.
Japan, whose territory is just 100 miles from Taiwan, has increasingly said that threats to Taiwan are also threats to Japan’s national security. Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida condemned the PLA’s drills. On August 5, he told the media, “I have informed Speaker Pelosi that China’s ballistic missiles have landed near Japanese waters, including Japan’s exclusive economic zone, which threatens our national security.”
Even before Pelosi’s visit, Taiwan’s military was on high alert. Later, the Executive Yuan issued a statement in which Taiwan’s Prime Minister Su Zengchang called the CCP an “evil neighbor” who “shows its muscles on our doorstep.”
President Tsai Ing-wen responded that Taiwan would remain rational and calm, while calling Beijing’s actions an “unprecedented threat.”
Beijing’s aggressive behavior is strengthening cooperation among allies such as Japan, Taiwan, India and Australia, which has condemned China’s recent intimidation of Taiwan. Beijing has established an aircraft identification zone over the Senkaku Islands in Japanese territory. While the U.S. has no official opinion on whether the disputed islands belong to China or Japan, under the U.S.-Japan Security Treaty, the U.S. must defend territory currently under Japanese control.
Likewise, China threatens territory in the Indian Himalayas. The United States and India are holding joint military exercises just 60 miles from where Indian and Chinese troops clashed in 2020.
“One China” is the official U.S. position, that is, the U.S. does not adjudicate and express no opinion on whether Taiwan belongs to China. Under the US’ Taiwan Relations Act, Taiwan’s status must be determined by peaceful negotiations between Beijing and Taipei. However, the United States is committed to selling arms to Taiwan to defend the island nation. President Biden said Pelosi’s visit did not mean a change in the U.S. position. While the U.S.’s position on Taiwan has remained “strategically ambiguous,” under a Biden administration, that stance appears to be increasingly less ambiguous.
On May 23, Biden said after a meeting with Prime Minister Kishida that he would use force to defend Taiwan. On June 1, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin stated that the United States is willing to expand arms sales to Taiwan.
At a time when the U.S. stance on Taiwan appears to be turning tough, the Taiwanese themselves are increasingly moving away from Beijing. A survey cited by Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council showed that 90 percent of respondents opposed the CCP’s diplomatic crackdown on Taiwan.
(Original link: https://link.theepochtimes.com/mkt_app/military-fallout-from-pelosis-taiwan-visit_4667912.html)