It’s August, the month of irresponsible tourism

A delegation of five U.S. congressmen arrived in Taiwan on Sunday for a two-day visit. A meeting with Taiwanese president Tsai Ing-wen is also on the agenda. Among other things, the parliamentarians will talk about US-Taiwan relations, security in the region and trade.

This is the second U.S. visit to Taiwan in a short period of time. In early August, Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the House of Representatives, also went to Taiwan, “in support of the country’s vibrant democracy”. This caused tensions between Taiwan and China, which does not recognize Taiwan as an independent country. China began military exercises shortly after Pelosi’s visit, crossing Taiwan’s borders.

With the New visit, the US shows that it does not regret Pelosi’s visit. “China has overreacted, and its actions are still provocative, destabilizing, and unprecedented,” an aide to U.S. president Joe Biden said in a statement.

The delegation is led by senator Ed Markey, chairman of the Senate East Asia subcommittee. Four prominent members of the House of Representatives accompany him. “[The congressmen] will reaffirm U.S. support for Taiwan, and encourage stability and peace around the Taiwan Strait, ” Markey said in a statement circulated by his associates. The visit to Taiwan is part of a more extensive journey through Asia. In Taiwan, the congressmen also want to talk about the production of semiconductors, essential parts of advanced electronics.

The Chinese Embassy in the U.S. immediately responded with an angry statement on Sunday. This visit ” proves once again that the US does not want stability around the Taiwan Strait and is making every effort to provoke confrontation between the two sides and interfere in China’s domestic affairs.”

The Taiwanese Ministry of Defense checks whether Chinese ships and aircraft cross the mid-line of the Taiwan Strait, the informal border between the two countries. On Saturday and Sunday, this border was crossed a couple of times by Chinese military aircraft.