ANI
05 Aug 2022, 09:25 GMT+10
Beijing [China], August 4 (ANI): Following US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's controversial visit to Taiwan on Tuesday, Chinese social media users mocked the government for not living up to its tough rhetoric and also taking military action to stop Pelosi's Taiwan trip.
Several users have claimed publically that they were disappointed by Beijing's lame response and how there was no military action in the Taiwan Strait when Pelosi's plane was touching down in Taiwan late Tuesday night.
People's Liberation Army is a waste of taxpayers' money, said the social media users.
Many people complained that they felt let down and lied to by the government. "Don't put on a show of power if you don't have the power," wrote a Weibo user shortly after the flight's landing, lambasting the government.
In fact, some users compared the People's Liberation Army to the Chinese men's soccer team, a laughing stock in the country because it has qualified for the World Cup only once. They sneered at the announcement that the P.L.A. would conduct military exercises near Taiwan. "Save some gas," said one WeChat user. "It's very expensive now," responded another, New York Times reported.
However, on Wednesday afternoon, a spokeswoman for the Foreign Ministry, Hua Chunying, responded to a question about the public's disappointment by saying that she believed the Chinese people had confidence in their country and their government.
The unification of Taiwan, a self-ruling democracy that Beijing considers part of its territory, with the mainland is a centerpiece of Chinese nationalism.
This problem has become progressively larger under Xi Jinping, as nationalist appeals have moved from the margins to the centre of the Chinese propaganda apparatus across the board.
The online backlash has already shown what importance Chinese government holds in the eyes of its community.
Most Chinese didn't pay very much attention to Pelosi's pending Taiwan visit until Monday afternoon, when a flurry of official and semiofficial statements led many to believe that China could take tough, possibly military actions to deter it.
Zhao Lijian, a foreign ministry spokesperson who may be China's best-known "wolf warrior" diplomat, warned the United States on Monday that the P.L.A. would "never sit idly by. China will definitely take resolute and strong countermeasures to defend its own sovereignty and territorial integrity," New York Times reported.
The angst of Chinese social media users skyrocketed so much that some of them even argued that only online warmongers should be sent to the frontlines. (ANI)Get a daily dose of Brisbane Star news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Brisbane Star.
More InformationNearly three months after a devastating earthquake struck Myanmar, the country remains trapped in a deepening crisis, compounded by...
MELBOURNE, Australia: A second embryo mix-up in just two months has pushed one of Australia's largest IVF providers back into the spotlight,...
SYDNEY, Australia: Australia will not ease its strict biosecurity rules during trade talks with the United States, Prime Minister Anthony...
Birmingham [UK], July 5 (ANI): Indian skipper Shubman Gill concluded a record-breaking Birmingham Test against England with breathtaking...
Birmingham [UK], July 5 (ANI): The Indian cricketing fraternity expressed happiness as skipper Shubman Gill continued his monumental...
Birmingham [UK], July 5 (ANI): Indian skipper Shubman Gill's dreamy, record-breaking continued to tire out bowlers and statisticians...
MADRID, Spain: Liverpool footballer Diogo Jota and his younger brother, André Silva, have died in a car accident in Spain. Spanish...
LONDON, U.K.: An unrelenting heatwave sweeping across Europe has pushed early summer temperatures to historic highs, triggering deadly...
President Donald Trump's plans to build a space-based Golden Dome missile defense shield have drawn immediate criticism from China,...
NEW YORK CITY, New York: Paramount has agreed to pay US$16 million to settle a lawsuit brought by U.S. President Donald Trump over...
LONDON, U.K.: British Prime Minister Keir Starmer won a vote in Parliament this week to move ahead with changes to the country's welfare...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: President Donald Trump will meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House on Monday. President...