By our Correspondent
China has reaffirmed that there is only one China in the world and that Taiwan is its inalienable part of its territory, rejecting claims by Taiwan’s leader Lai Ching-te that Taiwan is a “sovereign independent nation.”
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning made the position clear at a regular press briefing in Beijing on Tuesday, while responding to questions regarding Lai’s recent remarks on United Nations General Assembly Resolution 2758.
Lai had reportedly claimed that China was “contorting” Resolution 2758, arguing that the 1971 resolution dealt only with the representation of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) at the United Nations and did not mention Taiwan.
In her response, Mao rejected the interpretation, stressing that the one-China principle is an established fact grounded in history and international law.
She further cited the Cairo Declaration of 1943, issued by China, the United States and the United Kingdom, which explicitly stated that territories Japan had stolen from China, including Taiwan, should be restored to China.
Mao also pointed to the Potsdam Proclamation of 1945, which reaffirmed that the terms of the Cairo Declaration would be carried out.
“These instruments with legal effect under international law have all clearly affirmed China’s sovereignty over Taiwan,” Mao said.
Turning to UN General Assembly Resolution 2758, Mao said the resolution “decides to restore all its rights to the People’s Republic of China and to recognize the representatives of its Government as the only legitimate representatives of China to the United Nations.”
She maintained that, from political, legal and procedural perspectives, the resolution settled the issue of the representation of the whole of China, including Taiwan, at the United Nations.
She stressed that there is only one Chinese seat at the United Nations, leaving no basis for the concepts of “two Chinas” or “one China, one Taiwan.”
“Taiwan has never been a country and will never be a country,” she said.
Mao accused Lai of deliberately distorting Resolution 2758, describing the move as another manifestation of their separatist agenda for “Taiwan independence.”
“Such rhetoric will not change the historical and legal fact that the two sides of the Taiwan Strait belong to one and the same China, nor will it undermine the international community’s steadfast commitment to one China,” Mao said (GSF)