Pelosi Making Enemies With '1.4 Billion Chinese People': Foreign Minister

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is making enemies with "1.4 billion Chinese people" by visiting Taiwan, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Tuesday.

Pelosi, a California Democrat, landed on the island of Taiwan on Tuesday after facing weeks of threats from China over the trip. China has viewed her visit as a threat to their One China policy, which states that Taiwan is part of their country despite Taiwan claiming independence.

Wang again condemned Pelosi's trip during remarks to the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization on Tuesday, according to Xinhua News Agency, the official press agency of China.

"Some U.S. politicians only care about their self-interests, blatantly play with fire on the Taiwan question, make themselves enemies of the 1.4 billion Chinese people, and will definitely end up in no good place," Wang said, according to the news agency.

During his remarks, Wang also called out what he views as "the bullying deeds of Washington" that have been "exposed to the world." He chastised the U.S. as "the biggest destroyer of peace today."

Wang's comments are the latest against Pelosi's trip from Chinese authorities, who have made several threats in recent weeks. Chinese Foreign Ministry Deputy Director Zhao Lijian warned on Monday of "serious consequences" that would come from the visit.

In the hours leading up to Pelosi's arrival, concerns further mounted as a Chinese missile destroyer appeared off the coast of Taiwan and the Taiwanese military reportedly mobilized for war.

Taiwan has long been a contentious issue between the U.S. and China. Though the U.S. does not recognize Taiwan as an independent nation, the government has also showed support for the island, approving the potential sale of military equipment to Taiwanese leaders last month. U.S. officials have also become more concerned about the potential for China to invade Taiwan in recent months. The concerns were fueled by Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Essentially, Pelosi's visit drew such a strong response from China because authorities there view it as a violation of the One China policy, which the U.S. has generally upheld. However, she is not the first high-ranking U.S. official to visit the island. In 1997, House Speaker Newt Gingrich visited Taiwan.

Pelosi defended her visit in a Twitter thread Tuesday morning, soon after her arrival.

"Our delegation's visit to Taiwan honors America's unwavering commitment to supporting Taiwan's vibrant Democracy. Our discussions with Taiwan leadership reaffirm our support for our partner & promote our shared interests, including advancing a free & open Indo-Pacific region," she tweeted.

Back at home, Pelosi received rare bipartisan support for the trip. A group of Republican senators issued a statement backing her visit, writing that it "is consistent with the United States' One China policy to which we are committed."

She also faced protests from some critics in her hometown of San Francisco who were concerned that the visit could escalate tensions into a war with China.

Newsweek reached out to Pelosi's office for comment.