China halts talks on climate, military after Pelosi’s Taiwan visit

The People’s Republic of China said Friday it was canceling dialogue with the United States on a range of issues such as climate change, military relations, criminal investigations, and anti-drug efforts. Chinese Foreign Ministry officials said their changes came because U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan, which China claims as its own. Meanwhile, China said it will continue to carry out military exercises in the Taiwan Strait until Sunday.

How did Pelosi react? Speaking from Tokyo on Friday, the speaker said that China will not be able to isolate Taiwan by preventing U.S. officials from visiting the island. Pelosi added that her visit was not intended to change the status quo of the island and that China and the United States do need to communicate with each other.

Dig deeper: Read Carolina Lumetta’s report about Speaker Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan.