Attempt to contain China with Taiwan question leads nowhere

China said on Friday that attempts to solicit support from the United States for "Taiwan independence" or use the Taiwan question to contain China will lead nowhere, reiterating its firm resolve and ability to safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity.

It was reported that Taiwan region leader Lai Ching-te has concluded his "stopovers" in Hawaii and Guam during his first overseas visit to the Pacific since taking office. Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian deplored the U.S. move of insisting on arranging Lai's "stopovers", carrying out official interactions with the island, helping it expand so-called "international space" and providing platforms for "Taiwan independence" separatist activities.

China has lodged strong protests to the U.S. as Washington's arrangements violate the one-China principle and the three China-U.S. joint communiques, undermined China's sovereignty and territorial integrity, and send a wrong signal to "Taiwan independence" separatist forces, Lin said at a daily news conference.

Lin stressed that the Taiwan question is the crux of China's core interests, and the first red line that must not be crossed in Sino-U.S. relations.

The one-China principle is the political foundation of Sino-U.S. relations, he said.

The spokesman said that "Taiwan independence" separatist activities are incompatible with peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.

Beijing urges Washington to abide by the one-China principle and the three China-U.S. joint communiques, act on the U.S. leaders' commitment of not supporting "Taiwan independence", and stop its official interactions with the region, he said. The U.S. should stop obscuring and hollowing out the one-China principle, stop supporting the separatist forces and their activities in any form, and take concrete actions to stabilize bilateral relations and contribute to peace in the Taiwan Strait, Lin said.

When commenting on Lai's remarks in Palau, he said that no matter what the Democratic Progressive Party authorities say and what they do, they cannot change the fact that Taiwan is part of China, and it cannot stop the historical trend that China will be reunified. Lin urged the U.S. to see clearly the "Taiwan independence" nature of Lai and the DPP authorities, and stop meddling in Taiwan affairs and China's internal affairs.

Zhu Fenglian, a spokeswoman for the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, said on Friday that the Chinese mainland will never leave any room for Taiwan separatist activities and will resolutely thwart any external forces' interference. The DPP authorities shamelessly rely on external forces to continually seek "independence" through provocative actions, deliberately pursuing "independence" through military means, Zhu said, adding that their attempts to drag the Taiwan people onto the "independence" chariot will only bring great harm to them.

Zou Zhiqiang, deputy secretary-general of the Alliance for China's Peaceful Reunification based in the U.S., said that Lai has always emphasized so-called peace and stability, but it is fundamentally deceptive.

Condemning Lai's "transit" in the U.S., Zou said, "He often uses fancy rhetoric such as 'democracy' and 'freedom' to boast about his achievements, deceiving the people of Taiwan and the international community."