Blackburn's visit comes on the heels of US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's controversial visit in early August that outraged Beijing and resulted in extensive military exercises around Taiwan.
Earlier in the day the Central News Agency of Taiwan reported that the fourth US delegation in just one month will arrive in Taiwan on Thursday night despite China's strong opposition to any official foreign contacts with the island.
According to the report, the delegation of US congressmen aboard a military aircraft is expected to land at Taipei Songshan Airport on Thursday night. On Friday, the delegation will meet with Taiwanese leader Tsai Ing-wen and other senior officials.
The Taiwanese state nes agency has not provided information on the composition of the delegation.
The media also quoted the island's ministry of foreign affairs as saying that "the ministry will inform about the arrival of visitors to Taiwan, if any, in a timely manner."
China has repeatedly opposed visits of senior US officials to the island, as it considers Taiwan part of its territory and opposes any direct official foreign contacts with Taipei. The visit of US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to the island in early August triggered a new round of tensions in the Taiwan Strait and a wave of Chinese sanctions against Taiwan. Moreover, Beijing launched large-scale military exercises in the vicinity of the island, which included live-fire drills and military aircraft overflights close to Taiwan's airspace.
Pelosi's visit was followed by another US delegation led by US Senator Edward J. Markey on August 14 and the visit of Eric Holcomb, the governor of the US state of Indiana, on August 21, triggering yet another wave of China's military maneuvers near the island.