Taiwan: China conducts military exercises amid a new visit - 08/21/2022

Taiwan’s Defense Ministry said 12 aircraft and five Chinese ships were spotted near the island on Sunday, including five that crossed the Taiwan Strait.

Beijing, which regards the area as a rebel province, has been conducting military exercises in the area since then Visit of the Speaker of the US House of RepresentativesNancy Pelosi, in early August.

You weren’t the only one. Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb arrived in Taipei on Sunday, becoming the last US official to visit Taipei, in defiance of China, which sees the moves as a violation of its sovereignty. Last week again delegation from Members of the US Congress visited The island.

The Republican, who said via Twitter that he will also visit South Korea, is expected to meet President Tsai Ing-wen Monday morning (22), according to the Taiwan government. Holcomb described the visit to the countries as an “economic development journey” and highlighted the fact that he was the first US governor to go to Taiwan since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in late 2019.

“Our delegation will spend the week meeting with officials, business leaders, and academic institutions to further strengthen Indiana’s economic, academic, and cultural ties with Taiwan and South Korea,” he wrote. There was no immediate response from China to the Republican’s arrival.

Taiwan’s foreign ministry said Holcomb is also expected to meet with representatives from Taiwan semiconductor companies. The island is home to the world’s largest chip maker, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd. (TSMC), which is building a plant valued at about $12 billion in the US state of Arizona.

China says Taiwan is the most important and sensitive issue in its relationship with Washington and considers everything related to the island an internal matter. Meanwhile, Taipei says China has no claim to this area and only its 23 million residents can decide their future.