Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen warned that the Chinese government would retaliate if she met with the US House Speaker while passing through the US on her Central American tour.
According to Taiwan’s Central News Agency on the 29th, Fenglian Zhu, spokesman for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council of China, told a regular briefing that day, “If Tsai Ing-wen contacts US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, this is a serious violation of the ‘one China principle’ and a violation of China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.” It will be another provocation that undermines the integrity and destroys peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.”
Spokesperson Joo also emphasized, “We strongly oppose this and will definitely take resolute countermeasures.”
He continued, “The so-called ‘transit’ is essentially a provocative move to seek independence by relying on the United States,” and “an attempt to spread Taiwan’s independence claim internationally and gain support from anti-China forces in the United States.”
Spokesperson Zhu said, “The United States must abide by the one-China principle and the provisions of the three United States-China joint bulletins, and must not plan official contact with Tsai Ing-wen.” he paraphrased.
The three Joint Officials refer to the Shanghai Official Bulletin (February 1972), the US-China Official Bulletin (December 1978), and the August 17 Bulletin (August 1982) signed between the two countries as basic documents on US-China relations and Taiwan issues. The United States maintained its position of ‘supporting the one-China principle’ through the three joint public announcements.
President Tsai departed from Taipei at noon on the 29th and began a 10-day, 9-night, so-called ‘Glory with Democracy Partners’ tour.
Accordingly, a strong armed demonstration by the Chinese military is expected. In August of last year, when former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan for the first time as a US House speaker in 25 years, China conducted large-scale military exercises, including firing ballistic missiles over Taiwan.
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.