China tells House Speaker Kevin McCarthy not to visit Taiwan

China is urging House Speaker Kevin McCarthy not to visit Taiwan this spring in a repeat of tensions over then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit last year.

A spokeswoman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Beijing, which considers Taiwan a breakaway province, said a visit from the California Republican would cause a tense situation to deteriorate further.

“China opposes any form of official interaction between its Taiwan region and countries having diplomatic ties with China,” Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said Monday at a press conference. “We hope U.S. lawmakers will abide by the one-China principle and the three China-US joint communiqués and refrain from doing things detrimental to China-U.S. relations and peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.”

China stepped up military drills and scolded Mrs. Pelosi last year when she met with Taiwanese dignitaries and praised the island as a model of democracy in the region.

Pentagon planning for another speaker’s trip is unfolding amid new tensions over possible conflict between the U.S. and China.

An Air Force general raised eyebrows with a recent memo saying the U.S. could be at war with China by 2025 because of tensions over Taiwan.

The memo said the 2024 elections in Taiwan and the U.S. could give Chinese President Xi Jinping, who recently secured a historic third term, an opportunity to invade.

President Biden has said the U.S. would help Taiwan defend itself but the U.S. is not making any change to its “one China” policy, which acknowledges Beijing’s belief in a single Chinese government while allowing for informal relations with Taiwan.