Nancy Pelosi
Nancy PelosiReuters

Russia accused the United States of “provoking” China amid reports of an expected visit by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan during her Asia trip.

"We can now state unequivocally, whether she makes it there or not, everything about this tour and the possible visit to Taiwan has provocative character," Russian President Vladimir Putin’s press secretary Dmitry Peskov said, according to Fox News.

He added: "Russia has absolute solidarity with China."

Peskov made the statement as Pelosi began a visit to Malaysia after visiting Singapore.

"Instead of treating China’s position with understanding, the US has chosen the path of escalation and are provoking the situation," Peskov said. "Nothing good will come out of it."

On Tuesday, Pelosi issued a statement that she would be speaking about "security challenges, economic opportunities and governance priorities" with Malaysian officials. She did not verify whether she will travel to Taiwan, as expected.

Media in Taiwan have been reporting that Pelosi will arrive in capital Taipei sometime Tuesday night.

Also on Tuesday, White House Security Advisor Jake Sullivan was asked by NBC to confirm that Pelosi will become the highest ranking American official to visit Taiwan in 25 years.

"I cannot confirm that because the Speaker makes her own decisions about her travel,” he said.

"For China to try and turn what is in the historical norm into a crisis or to try and use it as a pretext for aggressive action around Taiwan – that’s on them. They would be the ones escalating... The United States has no interest in escalation."