Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan is worst provocation of all — LDPR leader

Leonid Slutsky pointed out that Washington had deliberately decided to fuel tensions, although China’s leader Xi Jinping warned the United States that "the one who plays with fire risks getting burned"

MOSCOW, August 2. /TASS/. The leader of Russia’s Liberal Democratic Party, head of the State Duma’s Committee on International Affairs Leonid Slutsky has slammed the visit to Taiwan by the Speaker of the US House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi as the greatest provocation of all.

"Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan is the greatest provocation of all. And the reaction from the White House, which does not see any reasons for an escalation in her arrival in Taipei is tantamount to ignoring the position of China, which has not given its consent to such a trip," Slutsky told reporters on Tuesday.

He stressed that Moscow fully supported the One China principle, considering Taiwan as its integral part. "This position was reaffirmed during Russian President Vladimir Putin's visit to China in February and was reflected in the joint statement by the two leaders," he added.

Slutsky pointed out that Washington had deliberately decided to fuel tensions, although China’s leader Xi Jinping warned the United States that "the one who plays with fire risks getting burned."

 

"Pelosi’s plane today drew a line in the sky over Taiwan that divided Sino-American relations into ‘before’ and ‘after’. Beijing has every right to take all steps it finds necessary to protect the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. Once again Washington acted as a provocateur and destabilizer of the situation in the region. Russia, as a key partner and a state neighboring China, cannot but be concerned about this," he concluded.