Pelosi announces COVID-19 infection after China threatens 'strong measures'

On the same day that China threatened the U.S. with "strong measures” if House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visits Taiwan, the Speaker’s office announced that she had contracted COVID-19 and had to postpone her trip to Asia. 

Pelosi had been planning to visit Japan this weekend. According to Japanese and Taiwanese media, she planned to then stop in Taiwan, though this was neither confirmed nor denied by Pelosi’s office. 

China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian insisted that Pelosi cancel the trip, saying that any official interaction between Washington and Taiwan will have “consequences”. 

"If the United States insists on having its own way, China will take strong measures in response to defend national sovereignty and territorial integrity. All possible consequences that arise from this will completely be borne by the US side," Lijian said Thursday, without giving details, according to Reuters. 

That same day, Pelosi’s office announced that she had contracted COVID-19, using the generic script used by politicians who become infected with the virus. 

"After testing negative this week, Speaker Pelosi received a positive test result for Covid-19 and is currently asymptomatic,” tweeted Pelosi's Deputy Communications Director Drew Hammill. “The Speaker is fully vaccinated and boosted, and is thankful for the robust protection the vaccine has provided. The Speaker will quarantine consistent with CDC guidance, and encourages everyone to get vaccinated, boosted and test regularly.” 

Due to this development, Pelosi’s office said that the Speaker would be canceling her trip to Asia. 

While Pelosi tested positive for the virus, Biden tested negative, even though the two were photographed kissing each others’ cheeks at a White House event. 

China has threatened the United States over Taiwan before, most recently in January, promising military conflict if the U.S. “emboldens” Taiwan to seek independence.  

“If the Taiwanese authorities, emboldened by the United States, keep going down the road for independence, it most likely will involve China and the United States, the two big countries, in a military conflict,” said Chinese Ambassador Qin Gang. 

Since Biden first occupied the White House, China has become more aggressively hostile and threatening towards the United States. 

Shortly after Biden assumed office, China openly mocked the U.S. in a meeting with American officials who wanted to restore relations with the Chinese Communist Party. 

China said that the U.S. “does not have the qualification to say that it wants to speak to China from a position of strength” and that “whether judged by population scale or the trend of the world, the Western world does not represent the global public opinion.” 

“Biden is weak. And many other countries are happy about it,” former Acting Director of National Intelligence Richard Grenell said in response to the meeting. “And the woke US media is too partisan to report fairly.” 

Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo wrote on Twitter: “Strength deters bad guys. Weakness begets war.”