The US government has not officially confirmed that Nancy Pelosi will visit Taiwan.

Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the US House of Representatives, arrived in Malaysia on Tuesday during her Asia tour.

Taiwanese and American media reported that she planned to visit Taipei on Tuesday evening, but there was no official confirmation.

  • Taiwan is a self-governing island, but it is claimed by China, which considers Taiwan a separatist province.

    Beijing has warned of "serious consequences" if Pelosi's visit takes place.

On Monday, China's UN representative, Zhang Jun, warned that the visit would undermine relations between Beijing and Washington.

China's foreign ministry also said Pelosi's visit "will be a gross interference in China's internal affairs," adding, "Those who play with fire will die from it."

  • Although the US maintains a "cordial informal relationship" with Taiwan, it has official diplomatic relations with China, not Taiwan.

There is strong bipartisan support for Taiwan among the American public and the US Congress.

And Nancy Pelosi, a high-ranking member of the Democratic Party, has long actively criticized the Chinese leadership, condemning human rights violations in China.

She previously met with pro-democracy dissidents and visited Tiananmen Square to commemorate the victims of the 1989 massacre.

  • Recently, American analysts and representatives of military departments have expressed concerns that China may take advantage of the Russian attack on Ukraine to seize Taiwan by military means.

  • Before the Russian invasion of Ukraine, US President

    Joe Biden

    said that the US military would not participate in hostilities defending Ukrainian territory.

    However, Biden has already stated several times this year that the United States will defend Taiwan in the event of a Chinese attack.

    We are talking about a possible military clash between two nuclear powers.

The speaker kicked off her Asia tour on Sunday, flying into Singapore.

Her publicly announced itinerary also included stops in Malaysia, South Korea and Japan, but not Taiwan.

US President Joe Biden said that the US military considers Pelosi's visit to Taiwan "not the best idea" now.

On Monday, White House national security spokesman John Kirby said the escalation by China could also include making "contradictory legal claims" in the coming days, such as the claim that the Taiwan Strait is not an international waterway.

According to him, other signs indicate that Beijing may invade Taiwan's airspace.

John Kirby noted that former Republican House Speaker Newt Gingrich visited Taiwan in 1997, and other US lawmakers visited Taiwan earlier this year.

However, China's ambassador to the UN, Zhang Jun, said that Pelosi's visit now is not comparable to the 1997 visit and will be considered a provocation.