Beijing warns US of ‘forceful’ reply to Taiwan visit by Pelosi

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• Planned visit by US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi would ‘shake the political foundation of China-US relations’, Chinese foreign ministry says
  
• The risk and cost would be huge, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences analyst warns
  

Beijing will retaliate with “forceful measures” if US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi goes ahead with her trip to Taiwan, the Chinese foreign ministry warned on Thursday, as diplomatic observers said such a visit would derail US-China relations even if their leaders agreed to recalibrate bilateral ties.

The latest warning from Beijing came as US President Joe Biden said talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping were likely “within the next 10 days”, although any such plans may have been affected by Biden’s subsequent Covid-19 diagnosis. The two leaders last spoke at a virtual summit in March.

The talks would aim to manage increasing tensions between the two rival nations, but a Taiwan trip by Pelosi risks upending that mission, Chinese diplomatic observers warned.

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