By Zuko Komisa
There is unfolding tension between China and Taiwan following a visit from a high-ranking leader of the United States in Taiwan.
Following US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s trip to Taiwan, China has announced preparations for unprecedented military drills close to the island, raising concerns about a possible Taiwan Strait crisis.
The 23 million residents of Taiwan have long faced the prospect of invasion, but under President Xi Jinping, China’s most forceful leader in a generation, that threat has grown more serious.
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Fears of a new conflict in the region are raised as a result of China’s plans to increase its military exercises close to Taiwan.
Point of View with Phemelo Motene spoke to Professor Chris Landsberg, Professor and SARChI Chair of African Diplomacy and Foreign Policy at the University of Johannesburg about the Taiwan tensions and what it all means.
LISTEN TO THE FULL CONVERSATION HERE:
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China undergoes largest ever military drill
After US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to the island, China’s largest-ever military exercises around Taiwan began on Thursday in a show of force that crossed crucial international shipping channels.
Pelosi left Taiwan Wednesday after a trip that defied a series of stark threats from Beijing, which views the self-ruled island as its territory.
Pelosi, who is second in line to the presidency, was the most prominent elected US politician to travel to Taiwan in 25 years.
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