As Pelosi lands in Taiwan, China plans 'targeted' military operations to counter her trip
Beijing, Aug 2: China on Tuesday warned that US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taiwan disregarding its stern warnings will have a "severe impact" on bilateral ties and it "gravely undermines" regional peace and stability, as the official media here said that the military will launch a series of "targeted" operations to counter her trip.
Pelosi landed in Taipei on Tuesday night, according to the television footage shown by US networks. She is the highest-ranking US official to visit Taiwan in 25 years.
After Pelosi arrived in Taiwan, China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a strong statement, saying that her visit is a "serious violation of the one-China principle and the provisions of the three China-US joint communiques".
China claims Taiwan as part of the mainland and vows to integrate what it calls the rebel province even by force.
"It has a severe impact on the political foundation of China-US relations, and seriously infringes upon China's sovereignty and territorial integrity. It gravely undermines peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, and sends a seriously wrong signal to the separatist forces for 'Taiwan independence'. China firmly opposes and sternly condemns this, and has made serious demarche and strong protest to the United States," the statement said.
There is but one-China in the world, Taiwan is an inalienable part of China's territory, and the Government of the People's Republic of China is the sole legal government representing the whole of China, it said.
This has been clearly recognised by United Nations General Assembly Resolution and 181 countries have established diplomatic relations with China on the basis of the one-China principle, it said.
"The one-China principle is a universal consensus of the international community and a basic norm in international relations," it said.
In 1979, the United States made a clear commitment in the China-US Joint Communique on the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations -- "The United States of America recognises the Government of the People's Republic of China as the sole legal Government of China," it said.
Dismissing US Secretary Antony Blinken's assertion that US Congress functioned independently from the government, the statement said the US "Congress, as a part of the US Government, is inherently obliged to strictly observe the one-China policy of the US Government and refrain from having any official exchanges with China's Taiwan region".
"China is all along opposed to the visit to Taiwan by US congressional members, and the US executive branch has the responsibility to stop such visit," it said.
"Since Speaker Pelosi is the incumbent leader of the US Congress, her visit to and activities in Taiwan, in whatever form and for whatever reason, is a major political provocation to upgrade US official exchanges with Taiwan. China absolutely does not accept this, and the Chinese people absolutely reject this," it said.
Citing the Ministry of National Defence spokesperson Sr. Col. Wu Qian, state-run Global Times reported that the Chinese military "will launch a series of targeted military operations to counter Pelosi's visit to Taiwan island, and resolutely defend national sovereignty and territorial integrity."
The Eastern Theatre Command of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) will launch a series of joint military operations around Taiwan Island starting Tuesday night.
The PLA Eastern Theatre Command will stage joint training exercises in the maritime areas off the northern, southwestern and south-eastern coasts of the island and their air space, conduct long-range live-fire drills in the Taiwan Strait and conventional missile tests in the waters off the eastern coast of the island, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
The military operations are a stern deterrent against the recent major escalation of the negative acts by the United States on the Taiwan question and a serious warning against separatist activities seeking "Taiwan independence , it said.
After arriving in Taipei, Pelosi said that the US delegation's visit "honours America's unwavering commitment to supporting Taiwan's vibrant democracy."
"Our visit is one of several Congressional delegations to Taiwan - and it in no way contradicts longstanding United States policy, she said.
"By travelling to Taiwan, we honour our commitment to democracy: reaffirming that the freedoms of Taiwan and all democracies must be respected."
She said that her "visit reiterates that America stands with Taiwan: a robust, vibrant democracy and our important partner in the Indo-Pacific."
Beijing routinely protests any foreign dignitaries' visits to Taiwan, which claims its own and firmly insists all countries follow the One China policy acknowledging that the breakaway province is part of its mainland.
Arriving by the US Air Force plane, Pelosi and her delegation was received at the tarmac of the Taipei airport by Taiwan's Foreign Minister Joseph Wu.
She flew from Malaysia as militaries of China, Taiwan and the US went on full alert amid high voltage rhetoric from Beijing objecting to her visit, saying that it is violation of its sovereignty as Taiwan belongs to it.
Pelosi was expected to meet Taiwanese President Tsi-Ing-wen, whom China accuses as separatist, on Wednesday and spend the day touring the island including some of the industrial units.
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Chandrayaan-5 to have heavier lander with longer mission life: ISRO Chief
Bengaluru (PTI): India is planning to collect samples from the Moon and bring them back to Earth under Chandrayaan-4, while Chandrayaan-5 will involve a heavier lander with a longer mission life, ISRO Chairman V Narayanan said on Wednesday.
He also spoke about ISRO's future missions including the one to study Venus and the other on Mars landing mission.
"Now we are working on the continuation of the Chandrayaan programme. In Chandrayaan-4, we plan to collect samples and bring them back. Chandrayaan-5 will involve a heavier lander with a longer mission life," he said at the inaugural ceremony of ISRO's fourth edition of the Space Science and Technology Awareness Training (START 2026) programme here.
He recalled that in Chandrayaan-3, the lander's mission life was only 14 days.
"In the future mission, we are talking about a life of around 100 days. The rover will also be heavier. Chandrayaan-3 had a rover of about 25 kg, while the future mission will have a rover of about 350 kg," Narayanan said.
Referring to ISRO's future programmes like the Venus Orbiter Mission, he said, "We have already accomplished the Mars Orbiter Mission, and now we are working on a Mars landing mission."
"These are some of the projects being discussed for government approval. So there is a lot of interest in the science area."
He noted that under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the vision of the space programme has been expanded and said, "We are currently working on the Gaganyaan programme and are planning to send our own astronauts into space and bring them back safely, possibly within the next two years."
"We are also planning to build our own space station by 2035. Additionally, we are working on landing Indians on the Moon and bringing them back safely by 2040. Brainstorming activities have already begun. So there are many activities happening in the space sector. Apart from application-related activities that ensure food security, water security, communication, and safety for citizens, there are many initiatives planned in the science area as well," he added.
Narayanan noted that India's space programme has accomplished 10 scientific missions so far, including AstroSat, which recently completed a decade in orbit and was still functioning very well.
He also highlighted India's various lunar exploration missions -- Chandrayaan-1, Chandrayaan-2, and Chandrayaan-3 -- saying they led to many scientific discoveries.
"We are progressing in a big way," he added.
Highlighting the successful Chandrayaan-3 mission in the year 2023, the ISRO chairman said that India became the first country to successfully achieve a soft landing near the south pole of the Moon.
"Not only did we achieve the landing, but many discoveries were made. Around eight minerals were identified, seismic activity was studied, and the thermal profile of the Moon's surface was understood. Electron clouds were also studied. So many discoveries have come from that mission," he added.
Referring to the launch of Aditya-L1, the ISRO chairman said, "India is the fourth country to successfully place a satellite to study the Sun, and a large amount of data has already come out, and we have released the data as well."
Emphasising India's Space Vision 2047, he recalled that the country, which started with very humble beginnings, has developed significant capabilities.
"Today, we have the capability to conceive, design, and build our own launch vehicles, as well as conceive, build, and place satellites in orbit. Fifty years ago, we did not have this capability. Today, we can build satellites and the payloads required for them," Narayanan said.
Citing an example, he said that earlier optical cameras used lenses that were only about one inch in diameter.
"But today, in ISRO, cameras with optics of about 1.7 metres in diameter and almost one foot in thickness are being developed. These optics are being built at the LEOS (Laboratory For Electro Optics Systems) laboratory in Bengaluru for space observation. Many such activities are happening in the space sector," he noted.
He pointed out that the US, after 1969 and almost after 50-55 years, has again shown interest in landing on the Moon.
"The Artemis programme is already a very vibrant programme, with many activities going on. An accord was signed in 2023, and India is also a signatory to that accord," he said.
Speaking about China and Russia leading efforts to build the International Lunar Research Station (ILRS), the ISRO chairman noted, "When we talk about such space stations, one aspect is technology development. The second aspect is the large number of scientific experiments that will take place there. There is also a lot of competition today."
"There was a time when only government organisations across the world carried out space activities. Today, companies like SpaceX have advanced significantly. In fact, they have overtaken many others in terms of launches," he added.
He said that the main idea behind programmes like START 2026 is to encourage the next generation of youngsters to develop interest in this field and to build scientific temper so that they can become great leaders in building the nation.
