On August 2nd, Nancy Pelosi went to Taiwan. She is the first high-ranking U.S. official to step foot in Taiwan in over 25 years, despite receiving threats from China to not do so. Pelosi went to Taiwan since it was on her “tour”, which included many other Asian countries, such as Singapore, Japan, and South Korea. China has threatened to display military force, and the White House worries that Pelosi’s actions will worsen the already unstable U.S.-China relationship. Because of Pelosi’s visit, China has been announcing that they are indeed planning to attack Taiwan through cyber attacks on their government sites, blocking food exports and imports, and launching missile tests near Taiwan’s borders. China also said they are ending cooperation with the U.S. on “key issues” including the climate crisis, anti-drug efforts, and military talks.

Pelosi stands by Taiwan in wanting to preserve their independence from China, which wants to take Taiwan as its own. She remarked, “We cannot stand by as the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) proceeds to threaten Taiwan — and democracy itself… As Russia wages its premeditated, illegal war against Ukraine… it is essential that America and our allies make clear that we never give in to autocrats.” The U.S. government has stated that China may be trying to officialize its claim that Taiwan is part of its territory, similar to the current Russia-Ukraine situation. President Biden originally said that the U.S. military believed Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan “was not a good idea right now.” Meanwhile, the White House maintains that they are trying to stay neutral but still support Taiwan’s decisions, as it would help strengthen their communication with Beijing. As of now, though, we will have to wait and see what exactly will happen now that Pelosi has made that trip, and how China will ultimately react.