Relations To Remain In Deep-Freeze As Pelosi Taiwan Trip Ends

Speaker of the US House of Representatives has departed Taiwan following a brief but highly controversial trip. She now heads to South Korea before moving onto Japan as part of a multi-leg Asia trip.

• Pelosi held meetings with Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen and delivered an address to the Taiwanese Legislative Yuan (parliament).
• Despite Pelosi leaving Taiwan, the repercussions of the visit look set to be felt for some time. China is already set to engage in major military exercises near the island from 4-7 August, and aerial incursions into Taiwan's Air Defence Identification Zone (ADIZ) are seen as likely to increase in size and frequency.
• The longer-term impact on US-China relations is too early to assess, but the prospect of any advancement in trade talks between the two sides appears to have been extinguished.
• Beijing's anger over the visit could also spur China to offer more support to Russia as it struggles with the economic fallout from being isolated from the West over its invasion of Ukraine, in an explicit rebuke to the US. So far, while China has talked up relations with Russia, it has sought to remain a step removed from the conflict in Ukraine in an effort to avoid Western sanctions.