The second high-level delegation to travel to Taiwan while there are military concerns between the self-governing island and China came on Sunday for a two-day visit during which they will greet President Tsai Ing-wen.
In response to Nancy Pelosi’s tour to Taipei in early August, Beijing, which claims democratically-governed Taiwan as its own territory, has undertaken military exercises all around the island.
The mission is being chaired by Senator Ed Markey, who is accompanied by four House members as part of what the de facto U.S. embassy in Taipei described as a wider visit to the Indo-Pacific area.
On Monday morning, the entourage would see Tsai, according to Taiwan’s presidential office.
Markey leading a group to Taiwan once more displays the United States Congress’ staunch support for Taiwan, the statement added, particularly at a time when China is escalating relations in the Taiwan Strait and also the surrounding area with military drills.
The East Asia, Pacific & International Cybersecurity Subcommittee of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee is chaired by Markey.
Representative Don Beyer and Representative John Garamendi, both members of the legislative Nuclear Weapons & Arms Control Working Group, will be serving as co-leaders of the visit, according to a Markey official.
The latest congressional visit, according to China’s embassy in Washington, shows that the United States does not desire to see consistency across the Taiwan Straits and it has exempted no effort to incite conflict and meddle in China’s internal affairs.
The embassy said members of the U.S. Congress should act in harmony with the one-China policy of the U.S. government.
Markey’s office said that Taiwanese MPs would express US support for Taiwan in accordance with the Taiwan Relations Act, U.S.-China Joint Communiques, plus Six Assurances, and they will promote stability and peace on both sides of the Taiwan Strait.
Markey’s office further added the delegation will meet with political officials and representatives of the private sector to talk about shared objectives such as easing friction in the Taiwan Strait and boosting economic cooperation, especially investments in semiconductors.
Markey had previously met Yoon Suk-yeol, the South Korean President during the delegation’s earlier stay in that country.
While Markey disembarked at the Taoyuan international airport, Taiwan’s Foreign Ministry published images of four lawmakers being welcomed upon their arrival aboard a U.S. air force transport jet at Taipei’s downtown Songshan airport.
According to the de facto U.S. embassy, the team will meet with senior Taiwanese leaders to discuss U.S.-Taiwan ties, trade and assets, regional security, climate change, global supply chains, and other important matters of mutual concern.
While China has stopped conducting military exercises near Taiwan, it is still doing so.
On Sunday, 11 Chinese military aircraft approached or crossed the air defence zone of Taiwan, according to the Taiwanese Defense Ministry. On Saturday, 13 aircraft made the strait, according to the ministry.
China is still facing a continuous battle with the coronavirus, with easing restrictions getting tighter again, many ventures are being halted with safety in mind. Mind the world, one of the world’s top economies would not fall easily.
