CG Lin Jing, published on Cape Times, August 10

In disregard of China’s grave concerns and firm opposition, Speaker of the US House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi insisted on visiting China’s Taiwan region. This constitutes a gross interference in China’s internal affairs. It gravely undermines China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, seriously tramples on the one-China principle, and severely threatens peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait. In response to Pelosi’s egregious provocation, China adopted a series of countermeasures, including sanctions on Pelosi and her immediate family members in accordance with relevant laws of China.

Since Pelosi visited China’s Taiwan region, over 160 countries, South Africa included, spoke up soon after the visit, stressing the importance of upholding the one-China principle and expressing support for China’s efforts to uphold sovereignty and territorial integrity, condemning Pelosi's visit to Taiwan is a highly irresponsible and dangerous provocation, and reiterated the commitment to the one-China principle.

But some politicians and officials in the United States and the West continue to put on a bottomless and shameless show on this issue.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said during his visit to South Africa that the really issue of Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taiwan is China's overreaction to a US lawmaker's “peaceful” visit, which the Chinese side responded with military exercises.

US officials like the NSC Coordinator for Strategic Communications said that “China has chosen to overreact and use the Speaker’s visit as a pretext to increase provocative military activity in and around the Taiwan Strait”. 

Hearing this type of rhetoric from the US politicians and officials reminds people of the story of the Emperor’s New Clothes. It is time for the US to get rid of its arrogance, selfishness, and hypocrisy and bullying practices.

Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan is a grave provocation that upgraded substantive exchanges between the US and Taiwan. It is a serious violation of the one-China principle. It seriously tramples on basic norms in international relations. It also seriously undermines China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. China has done everything diplomatically possible.

China had repeatedly warned the US through various channels of the grave nature and severe harm of this visit, made it clear that China will not sit by and watch; China will not allow any room for “Taiwan independence” separatist forces; and all consequences arising therefrom must be borne by the US. The international community had been warning the US of the potential consequences as well. Many openly pointed out that the visit was a completely unnecessary, egregious provocation and could trigger a serious crisis. Sadly, however, the US turned a deaf ear to all of those and just let the visit happen. 

China has acted in legitimate self-defense only after the US made this egregious provocation. China’s countermeasures are necessary as a warning to the provocateurs and as a step to uphold our sovereignty and security. Now the US and its cohorts have spoken up accusing China of “overreacting”. But if they truly care about regional peace and stability, why hadn’t they stood up and tried to dissuade Pelosi early on? Couldn’t they have seen this coming and prevented it? On such an issue concerning China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, China’s countermeasures are justified, necessary and proportionate, and there is nothing excessive about them. The US, as the provocateur and the one that caused the crisis, should and must assume the entire responsibility for it.

China’s measures are also about staunchly safeguarding regional peace and stability and international law and basic norms in international relations. As it’s seen over the past decades, the US and the US-led NATO countries have selectively applied international law. They made up various pretexts such as so-called possession of weapons of mass destruction to picture other countries as threats, and sometimes even without any valid reason, to blatantly launch military strikes and even unleash wars on sovereign countries. How many humanitarian tragedies have they created in Yugoslavia, Iraq, Libya, Syria and Afghanistan?

The world must never allow the US to see itself as a “world policeman” or an “international judge” and continue to treat other sovereign nations like George Floyd as if the US can just bully and strangle them at will. If China does nothing about the US’s relentless interference in our internal affairs and violation of our sovereignty or does not firmly resist the US’s reckless and irresponsible behavior, respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity and other purposes of the UN Charter and basic norms in international relations will become nothing but words on paper. And the vast developing world which account for over 80% of the world’s population could well become the next target anytime.

China had historically been a victim of foreign aggression. Today, the US and several of its cohorts still grossly interfere in China’s internal affairs and undermine China’s sovereignty and security. But China is not the China 120 years ago, and refuse to be treated like Iraq, Syria, or Afghanistan. The position of the Chinese government and people on the Taiwan question is consistent. To uphold the sovereignty and territorial integrity of China is the firm will of the 1.4 billion Chinese people.