China refutes groundless accusations

Beijing's UN statement on Taiwan blames countries for interference

China's Permanent Mission to the United Nations on Tuesday firmly refuted a Taiwan-related joint statement made by several countries including Belize.

The permanent representatives to the UN of Belize, the Kingdom of Eswatini, Guatemala, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and a few other countries on Tuesday released a so-called joint statement on the current situation across the Taiwan Straits, making groundless accusations against China's legitimate measures in safeguarding its sovereignty and territorial integrity, China's Permanent Mission to the UN said in a statement released on Tuesday.

It's a serious interference in China's internal affairs, and China firmly opposes and strongly condemns such an action, said the statement.

There is but one China in the world, Taiwan is an inalienable part of China's territory, and the government of the People's Republic of China is the sole legal government representing the whole of China. This has been clearly reaffirmed by UN General Assembly Resolution 2758 of 1971. So far, 181 countries have established diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China. Taiwan's so-called diplomatic relationship with 14 countries goes against the UN resolution.

"The one-China principle represents the universal consensus of the international community. It is consistent with the basic norms of international relations," the statement said.

By maintaining "diplomatic relations" with Taiwan, countries issuing this joint statement have been seriously violating China's sovereignty and territorial integrity and interfering in China's internal affairs. "Already standing against the vast majority of countries around the world, now they have taken another wrong step by issuing such a fact-distorting statement," it said.

In the joint statement, these countries claimed that the military exercises by the Chinese People's Liberation Army surrounding the island of Taiwan "put regional security at risk". The measures China has taken, including military drills in waters and airspace off China's Taiwan, are a necessary response to the visit by the Speaker of the US House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, and other provocations by external forces, the statement said.

"All these measures taken by China are justified, necessary and proportionate, and are in line with domestic and international laws as well as established international practices."

The causes of the recent tensions in the Taiwan Straits are clear, and so are the merits of the matter. China is not the one that stirred up trouble or created the crisis, the statement said.

"These countries turned a blind eye to the fact that external forces have recently undermined China's sovereignty and territorial integrity. Instead, they unreasonably accused China of its legitimate measures. This only shows that they have lost the basic sense of right and wrong, as well as their impartiality and independence," the statement said.

In the joint statement, these countries claimed that they wish the "status quo" can be maintained. In regard to this, the statement said Taiwan has never been a country, there is only one China in the world, and both sides of the Taiwan Straits belong to one and the same China. This has been the status quo of the Taiwan question since ancient times.

"It must be pointed out that external forces like the US have been abetting and instigating the 'Taiwan independence' forces to redouble their separatist efforts and repeatedly alter the status quo across the Straits. This is the fundamental reason behind the tensions in the Taiwan Straits and the grave challenges we now face," the statement said.

The joint statement also mentioned the so-called "median line". "They should know that Taiwan is part of China's territory, and there is no such 'median line' in the Taiwan Straits to begin with," the statement said.

"It is the firm commitment of the more than 1.4 billion Chinese people to resolutely safeguard state sovereignty and territorial integrity," the statement said.