US bears all the responsibility for consequences of Pelosi's risky trip: China Daily editorial

Activists from Pivot to Peace, ANSWER Coalition, CODEPINK, Veterans for Peace and leaders of the Chinese community in San Francisco hold a demonstration in front of US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's office at the San Francisco Federal Building on Monday. LIA ZHU/CHINA DAILY

The way US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taiwan has unfolded since it was first proposed in April has explicitly demonstrated that the escalation of tensions in the Taiwan Straits is solely attributable to the United States' unilateral provocations.

The visit constitutes a grave violation of China's sovereignty and territorial integrity and seriously shakes the political foundation of the ties between the two countries. It lifts the lid on a Pandora's box.

Adding to the absurdity of her action, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken claimed on Monday that Pelosi's visit is entirely her own decision and tried to pin the blame for the rising tensions on China, saying that "If the speaker does decide to visit and China tries to create some kind of crisis or otherwise escalate tensions, that would be entirely on Beijing".

China has full legitimacy to take all necessary countermeasures to safeguard its territorial integrity. In a salami-slicing manner, the US is trying to void its commitment to the one-China principle and distort the Taiwan question by falsely portraying it as an issue of "democracy" versus "authoritarianism", rather than what it is, an internal affair of China.

If the House speaker is simply taking a vacation, her sizable retinue, including the USS Ronald Reagan aircraft carrier strike group that has been escorting her all the way after she neared the First Island Chain, lays bare how willing the Joe Biden administration is to accommodate her sight-seeing. Not to mention that provoking China to take actions satisfies the Biden administration's wish to consolidate the formation of its "Indo-Pacific" gang.

The lengths the Tsai Ing-wen administration has gone to in its preparations to receive the "distinguished guest" speaks volumes of its role as a pawn of the US. Although its awareness that it has been hoisted by its own petard in garnering the support of senior US politicians for its secessionist cause is evidenced by reports in the Taiwan media that Tsai withdrew her invitation, only to reissue it after being scolded by Pelosi.

Beijing's stance on the Taiwan question and Sino-US relations is consistent, and it could not have made it any clearer: It will resolutely safeguard China's sovereignty, security and territorial integrity. If the US persists with its risky antics, it will be held responsible for any and all consequences of its "thief crying catch the thief" game.

Pelosi's visit to the Chinese island, contrary to the Biden administration's claims of innocence, is wanton and dangerous interfering in another country's internal affairs. The whole world should be aware that in seeking to create space for the secessionists, the US is breaking the basic norms of international relations in a bid to open a second front in Asia and transform its attempts to contain China into a siege. That's a ruinous proposition for all.