Tiananmen, Tibet, Hong Kong — The Many Times Nancy Pelosi Confronted China Before Taiwan Visit

Nancy Pelosi has criticised China all through her career. From her visit to Tiananmen Square in 1991 to meeting Dalai Lama more than once, here are a few instances when she confronted China.

US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi speaking, as Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen (R) listens, at the Presidential Office in Taipei.

Source : AFP

Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the US House of Representatives, landed in Taiwan Tuesday despite China's warnings, and met President Tsai Ing-wen, pledging America’s “crucial” solidarity with the country. She promised continued support to the Taiwan government, and Tsai also said they would not back down even as they face "heightened" military threats from Beijing.

China has, on expected lines, reacted aggressively to Pelosi’s controversial visit, launching missile tests and military “operations”, which Taiwan said breached international law.

The Taiwan visit, however, is not the first time that Nancy Pelosi has confronted China. In her long career in the US Congress, she has criticised the Chinese government several times.

From her visit to Tiananmen Square in 1991 to meeting the Dalai Lama, here are a few instances when the US Congresswoman took on China.

Tiananmen Square Visit, 1991

In 1991, Nancy Pelosi, then a young politician on a visit to China, showed up at Tiananmen Square and unfurled a hand-painted banner that read "To those who died for democracy in China". The gesture meant to "honour" those killed during the 1989 pro-democracy protests at the site. 

28 years ago, we traveled to Tiananmen Square to honor the courage & sacrifice of the students, workers & ordinary citizens who stood for the dignity & human rights that all people deserve. To this day, we remain committed to sharing their story with the world. #Tiananmen30 pic.twitter.com/7UqiJVRS3t

— Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) June 4, 2019

The Chinese police had then forced Pelosi to leave the place, after pushing away reporters covering her visit.

China's Olympic Bid

Over the years, Nancy Pelosi has remained vocal about her stance on China. In 1993, she had demanded the rejection of China's bid to hold the Olympic Games. She also called on then US president George W Bush to boycott the 2008 Summer Olympics held in China. In 2022, Pelosi again called for a diplomatic boycott of the Winter Olympics in Beijing, criticising China's treatment of Uyghur Muslims and other minorities.

Meeting 'Dissidents'

Nancy Pelosi has riled Beijing in other ways too. Besides her critical questioning of democratic freedom in China and violation of human rights, she has also frequently met political and religious dissidents.

In 2010, Pelosi travelled to Oslo for the awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize to imprisoned Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo.

One of the first foreign trips she took after becoming the house speaker in 2015 was to India when she led a Congressional delegation to Dharamsala to meet the Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama, whom Beijing perceives as a separatist. She had met the Dalai Lama earlier in Washington too. 

Hong Kong, Taiwan And Tibet

Pelosi has also voiced support for the pro-democracy movements in Hong Kong over the years. In 2019, she said the US stood "in solidarity with freedom-loving people of Hong Kong", and has also spoken against "genocide" in Xinjiang and continued repression in Tibet.

Pelosi flew into Taiwan on Tuesday, making her the highest-ranked elected US official to visit the island in 25 years. This has raised a fresh bout of tension between Washington DC and Beijing.