BEIJING – China’s foreign ministry and embassies around the world this weekend warned countries against supporting Taiwan’s Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and condemned foreign governments that congratulated the island’s newly elected president Lai Ching-te.
After presidential candidate DPP Lai won the election on Saturday, several ministers and politicians from countries that share warm, if mostly unofficial, ties with the self-governing island sent congratulatory messages to Lai and the DPP.
That prompted swift reactions from Chinese embassies, underscoring Beijing’s sensitivity to other countries appearing to give legitimacy to a candidate and political party it sees as “secessionist forces” hoping to turn Taiwan, which it claims as its own, into an independent sovereign state .
China’s Foreign Ministry on Sunday described a statement by US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken congratulating Lai and saying Washington was looking forward to further unofficial ties with Taiwan as “sending a seriously wrong signal” to “Taiwan independence separatist forces”.
“China has always firmly opposed any form of official exchanges between the United States and Taiwan, and firmly opposes the United States interfering in Taiwan’s affairs in any form and under any pretext,” the foreign ministry said in a statement released on your website.
The Chinese embassy on Saturday condemned what it called “misconduct” by British Foreign Secretary David Cameron after he said in a statement congratulating Lai and his party that the election was “proof of Taiwan’s vibrant democracy”.
“We urge the UK to recognize the position that Taiwan is a province of China, handle Taiwan-related matters carefully in accordance with the one-China principle, stop any remarks that interfere with China’s internal affairs,” the embassy said in a statement. posted on her official WeChat account.
The Chinese embassy in Japan went so far as to make a formal representation, a form of official diplomatic protest, after Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa congratulated Lai on his victory.
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Kamikawa called the self-governing island an “extremely crucial partner and important friend,” but also said in the same statement that the working relationship with Taipei was on a “non-governmental basis.”
“We solemnly call on the Japanese side to refrain from disrupting peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and Sino-Japanese relations,” the Chinese embassy said.
Beijing, which has never renounced the use of force to bring Taiwan under its control, fears that Lai might declare the Republic of Taiwan, which Lai has said he will not do.
Even on the eve of the election, Chinese diplomats warned their host countries of the consequences of supporting Lai and the DPP.
Xiao Qian, China’s ambassador to Australia, published an article in The Australian on Friday warning his host country of unspecified dangers should it support “Taiwanese independence forces” such as the DPP.
“If Australia is hitched to the bandwagon of Taiwanese separatist forces, the Australian people would be pushed over the edge,” he wrote.
