China’s military posted ominous video of missile strikes, troops hurriedly grabbing their weapons and jet fighters taking off from airfields today, one day ahead of an expected visit to Taiwan by US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Taiwanese media outlets reported that Pelosi (D-Calif.) would arrive on Tuesday night local time after visiting Malaysia on the second leg of her ongoing Asia trip, making the speaker the highest-ranking US elected official to visit the country since then-House Speaker Newt Gingrich in 1997.

The island nation’s three largest newspapers — United Daily News, Liberty Times and China Times — all reported that the Democratic congressional delegation led by the speaker would spend Tuesday night in Taipei. Pelosi’s office previously confirmed that she would visit Singapore, Malaysia, South Korea and Japan, but did not say whether Taiwan was on the itinerary. She is scheduled to be in Malaysia on Tuesday and South Korea on Thursday, but her schedule for Wednesday remains unclear.

Reports that Pelosi would visit Taiwan have riled the Chinese, who said Monday that their military would not “sit idly by” and warned that the lawmaker’s trip would result in “serious consequences.” (NY Post)

Source: Matzav