The Kremlin said  that the level of tension provoked by U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan “should not be underestimated”.

Responding to a question about whether the world was closer to war, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that he was not in favour of using that word but reiterated that the visit was a “provocation”.

He added that no additional contacts between President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping were planned in light of the visit.

Pelosi’s arrival on Tuesday in Taiwan prompted a furious response from Beijing at a time when international tensions were already elevated by the conflict in Ukraine