China reaffirms 'one China' policy amid Taiwan's Lai's inauguration
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China slams Taiwan's Lai Ching-te's separatist notions as "dangerous", reiterating that China and Taiwan will remain one entity.
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In this photo released by Taipei News, President-elect Lai Ching-te gets sworn in as Taiwan's new president during his inauguration ceremony in Taipei, Taiwan, Monday, May 20, 2024. (AP)
China's top diplomat said on Monday that Taiwan's internal politics does not obstruct the fact that the island and China are one part of a full entity, calling all attempts for its independence "dangerous", specifically after Lai Ching-te was instated as president.
At a meeting of Shanghai Cooperation Organization foreign ministers held in Kazakhstan, Wang Yi said that Taiwan's efforts for independence were "the most serious challenge to the international order," the "most dangerous change in the status quo," and the main disruptor of peace in the Taiwan Strait.
Wang Yi further asserted that China and Taiwan were one entity as per historical facts, noting that their reunification was inevitable.
When asked about Lai's inauguration, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin warned of the "political manipulation" certain countries exercised regarding the Taiwan issue, which interfered with China's internal politics.
"China strongly condemns this, and will take some necessary measures to resolutely protect national sovereignty and territorial integrity," he said.
Lai gave his inauguration speech earlier, in which he urged China to "stop threatening Taiwan with war," and to choose dialogue instead of confrontation when it came to Taiwan. He further stated that Taiwan would not be intimidated by China, as it kickstarts a "new era of democracy."
Beijing's Taiwan Affairs Office spokesperson Chen Binhua slammed the speech for promoting separatist notions, provoking cross-strait confrontations, and accused Taiwan of depending on foreign forces for its independence.
US-Taiwanese efforts to counter China
Last week, four people told Reuters that the US and Taiwan navies carried out joint drills in the Pacific in April that were off the books.
The United States has been reinforcing alliances with countries in the Asia-Pacific region, raising tensions as it amps up its rhetoric against China.
The sources, who asked to remain anonymous, told Reuters that these non-publicized drills happened last month in the Western Pacific, with one source revealing that "multiple military assets" were part of it.
This came after the US authorized a 700 million dollar military aid package to Taiwan in March, as announced by the US delegation visiting the island. “This [package] includes a strong Taiwan maritime strategy and how we can work together on shared goals to counter China on their increasingly aggressive actions in the region,” Special Operations Subcommittee, Rep. Jack Bergman said, during his meeting with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen.
Taipei had also confirmed the presence of US soldiers on its front-line islands with China across the Taiwan Strait, including one just a few kilometers away from China's southeast shores and over 150 km away from Taiwan's main island.
Read more: China drops 'peaceful reunification' with Taiwan, boosts mil. budget
