Chancellor Wang Yi once again said that he understands the movement as an attempt to divide Chinese sovereign territory
China's foreign ministry issued a strong statement after the elections that elected nationalist candidate Lai Ching-te as the new president of Taiwan on Saturday (13 January 2024).
Speaking to journalists, Foreign Minister Wang Yi vehemently denied the possibility of the island's independence. He said that anyone who engages in this regard will be “harshly punished”.
“If anyone on the island of Taiwan thinks about seeking independence, they will be trying to divide the territory of China and will certainly be severely punished by both history and the law.”, said Wang, who is in Cairo (Egypt). The information is from AFP.
The chancellor once again said that mainland China rejects the concept of a nation-state for the island, which is seen by Beijing as a province “rebel” since the end of the Chinese Civil War (1927-1949). “Taiwan has never been a country. It wasn’t in the past and it certainly won’t be in the future.”he stated.
In a document issued this Sunday (14 January), the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs also sent a message to the United States after the US State Department congratulated Lai Ching-te and said it wanted to strengthen relations with the new government.
“The US State Department's statement on elections in China's Taiwan region seriously violates the 'One China' principle […] The Taiwan issue is at the heart of China's fundamental interests and is the first red line that must not be crossed“, said the Chinese ministry. Read the complete of the note (PDF – 151 kB, in English).
Also on Saturday (13 January), US President Joe Biden said that the country does not support Taiwan independence. The National Security Council followed the same position: “We are opposed to unilateral changes to the status quo by either side […] We take no position on the final resolution of differences, as long as they are resolved peacefully.”said the council.
ELECTIONS IN TAIWAN
The nationalist DPP (Democratic Progressive Party) candidate, Lai Ching-te, was elected president of Taiwan on Saturday (13 January). With the counting of all 17,795 voting booths, the politician had 40.05% of valid votes (5,586,019 votes), according to data from the Electoral Commission.
Hou Yu-ih, Lai's main opponent and member of the KMT (Kuomintang) party, appears with 33.49% (4,671,021). Ko Wen-je, from the TPP (Taiwan People's Party), has 26.46% (3,690,466 votes). Both recognized defeat in the election.
In power since 2016, the DPP defends the region's autonomy from China, which considers Taiwan as part of its territory in the form of a dissident province. The party also reinforces the island's need to strengthen relations with the United States and Japan.
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