A delegation of US congressmen travels to Taiwan amid tensions with China

A delegation of US congressmen has arrived in Taiwan this Sunday for a two-day visit in which they will meet with President Tsai Ing-wen, amid military tensions with China around the island after the president's recent visit. of the House of Representatives, Democrat Nancy Pelosi.

Although Pelosi's visit was not liked in the White House, Biden has been very careful to criticize her in public and has limited herself to saying that she was "in her right" to decide to go.

Beijing, which considers Taiwan part of its territory, last week carried out maneuvers in the Strait of Formosa, in response to Pelosi's brief visit, which it considered a provocation that upsets the

.

In addition, he has toughened the tone towards the self-ruled island in a new white paper, in which he does not rule out the use of force to achieve reunification.

The Chinese government also canceled high-level military meetings with the United States, as well as cooperation on issues such as the fight against climate change, considering that the Democrat's trip undermined her "sovereignty and territorial integrity."

The delegation is led by Massachusetts Democratic Senator Ed Markey, who is accompanied by three Democratic House members and one Republican.

The visit is part of a broader tour to the Indo-Pacific region, as reported by the American Institute in Taiwan, the United States representation in the country, which functions as an embassy.

"The delegation will meet with senior Taiwanese leaders to discuss US-Taiwan relations, regional security, trade and investment, global supply chains, climate change and other important issues of mutual interest," he said. said the US representation on the island in a statement.

Taiwan's presidential office said the group will meet with Tsai on Monday.

"Especially at a time when China is raising tensions in the Taiwan Strait and in the region with military exercises," the lawmakers' initiative "once again demonstrates the strong support of the United States Congress for Taiwan," he said. the presidential office in a statement, according to information gathered by news agencies.

Taiwan's Foreign Ministry released photos of four members of the delegation at Songshan Airport in central Taipei after arriving on a US Air Force flight.

This week, when asked about Pelosi's visit, presidential spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre insisted on the White House doctrine: “We are going to reiterate it: it was her right to go.

There were precedents for this.

As we know, Newt Gingrich, when he was Speaker of the House, was a generation ago.

And again, that doesn't change our one-China policy."

With this policy, the United States does not legally recognize Taiwan's independence, but urges to resolve differences peacefully.

Jean-Pierre added a phrase perfectly applicable to the current visit: "It is up to the members of Congress to make the decision about where they travel."

Although China's maneuvers around Taiwan have subsided, military activities continue.

Taipei, in fact, has criticized this weekend that Chinese fighters have crossed the median dividing line, the unofficial border of the Strait of Formosa.

Taiwan's Defense Ministry said on Sunday that it had detected 22 Chinese planes and six Chinese ships in and around the strait.

Washington announced on Friday that it will strengthen its trade relations with Taiwan and will not give up using air and sea routes across the Strait, said Kurt Campbell, White House Asia-Pacific coordinator.

“China has overreacted and its actions remain provocative, destabilizing and unprecedented,” Campbell said, adding: “China's actions are fundamentally contrary to the goal of peace and stability.

They are part of an intensified pressure campaign against Taiwan, which has not ended, and we expect it to continue in the coming weeks and months.

The goal of this campaign is clear: to intimidate and coerce Taiwan and undermine its ability to resist.”

A man crashes into the Capitol and commits suicide

While the US legislative delegation arrived in Taiwan, in the Capitol, seat of Congress, a new incident of violence was experienced.

A man has crashed his car into the barricade that protects the building and after leaving the vehicle engulfed in flames with a weapon, he has shot first in the air and then at himself, dying on the spot, as reported by the Capitol Police it's a statement.

No one else has been injured.

"At this time, it does not appear that the man was targeting any member of Congress, who is in recess, and it does not appear that officers have fired their weapons. Our investigators are looking into the man's background," the note added.

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