BEIJING, May 7 : China on Thursday said that Taiwan remains the priority topic ahead of a highly anticipated summit between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping next week, saying that adherence to the “One China” policy remains the foundation of stable bilateral ties between both the nations.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian said, “Taiwan is non-negotiable. “The Taiwan question is at the very core of China’s core interests and the bedrock of the political foundation of China-U.S. relations. ,” he said, framing U.S. adherence to Beijing’s position not as a diplomatic courtesy, but as a basic obligation, and a prerequisite for any stable relationship between the two powers.
“Abiding by the one-China principle and the three China-U.S. joint communiqu s, and honoring the commitments made by U.S. administrations on the Taiwan question is the U.S.’s due international obligation and the prerequisite for a steady, sound and sustainable China-U.S. relationship. China has unwavering resolve in safeguarding national unity and territorial integrity. “Taiwan independence” and cross-Strait peace are as irreconcilable as fire and water. To keep the Taiwan Strait peaceful and stable, there must be unequivocal opposition to “Taiwan independence.”
Trump is scheduled to travel to China on May 14-15 for his second face-to-face meeting with Chinese President Xi, following their encounter last year in South Korea.
Moreover, the US remains Taiwan’s most important unofficial ally and continues to sell it weapons under a law that obligates Washington to support the island’s self-defense, a persistent irritant in U.S.-China relations.
Last week , China’s top diplomat Wang Yi said he hopes the U.S. would make the “right choices” relating to the self-ruled island when he spoke with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
China and Taiwan have been governed separately since a civil war ended in 1949, but Beijing still considers the island its territory and has never ruled out taking it by force.
China’s top diplomat Wang Yi met Thursday with a bipartisan group of American senators led by Republican Steve Daines.
Wang credited both Xi and Trump for steadying the relationship during a turbulent stretch, saying the two sides had “managed to maintain overall stability” despite a year of friction over trade and other issues.
Daines, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and a strong supporter of Trump, agreed and said that both countries should look for stability.
“I strongly believe that we want to de-escalate, not decouple. We want stability, we want mutual respect,” he said.
In the run-up to that visit, the U.S. has also been pressing Beijing to use its sway with Iran to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz, through which roughly a fifth of the world’s oil passes. Daines pointed to Wang’s Wednesday meeting with Iran’s foreign minister as a sign that China is engaged on the issue.
(UNI)
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