Beijing has once again labeled Taiwan leader William Lai Ching-te a \u201cdestroyer of peace\u201d in the Taiwan Strait following his recent statements reiterating his view that Taiwan and mainland China are \u201cnot subordinate to each other.\u201d<\/p>\n
The mainland\u2019s Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) said in a statement on Wednesday that while Lai claims to \u201cdesire peace and stability\u201d across the Taiwan Strait, he \u201cstubbornly\u201d adheres to the stance of \u201cTaiwan independence\u201d and has repeatedly advocated separatist rhetoric.<\/p>\n
\u201cLai is deliberately destroying peace, restricting cross-strait exchanges, and planning to rely on foreign support or force to achieve independence,\u201d TAO spokesman Zhu Fenglian said.<\/p>\n
\u201cHis latest statement has once again revealed his true nature as a destroyer of cross-strait peace and a creator of Taiwan Strait crises,\u201d Zhu added.<\/p>\n
Zhu was referring to Lai\u2019s remarks at Monday\u2019s Lunar New Year event for the island\u2019s business leaders, organized by the Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF), a semi-official organization aimed at facilitating cross-strait relations.<\/p>\n
\u201cSovereignty is essential to a country\u2019s existence; without Taiwan, there is no Republic of China,\u201d Lai said at the event, using Taiwan\u2019s official name.<\/p>\n
Lai reiterated his commitment to the four principles laid out by his predecessor Tsai Ing-wen, including \u201cadvocating that the Republic of China (Taiwan) and the People\u2019s Republic of China are not subordinate to each other.\u201d<\/p>\n
This was not the first time Lai had advocated this slogan. In his inaugural speech in May, he angered Beijing by arguing that the two sides were \u201cnot subordinate\u201d to each other.<\/p>\n
Lai said the principles proposed by Tsai include preserving a \u201cdemocratic and free constitutional system,\u201d protecting \u201cTaiwan\u2019s sovereignty from violation and annexation,\u201d and allowing the Taiwanese people to determine their own future.<\/p>\n
Beijing has labeled the Taiwanese leader a \u201cseparatist\u201d and warned that he could further escalate cross-strait tensions, which have intensified since Lai took office in May.<\/p>\n
\u201cAlthough the two sides of the Taiwan Strait have not yet been fully united, the fact that both the mainland and Taiwan belong to a single China and that Taiwan is an integral part of China has never changed and cannot be changed,\u201d Zhu said on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
International institutions such as the United Nations and most countries, including the United States, do not recognize Taiwan as an independent state. However, Washington opposes the self-governing island\u2019s unification with Beijing and provides Taiwan with arms and defense support.<\/p>\n
On Monday, Lai also called for cross-strait exchanges and dialogue, pledging to create a better business environment for entrepreneurs. Business leaders at the event expressed concern over geopolitical tensions, including cross-strait frictions and US-China rivalry, according to a report by the Taiwan Mainland Affairs Council.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe believe that peace is very valuable, and there are no winners in war,\u201d Lai said.<\/p>\n
\u201cBoth sides should replace conflict with exchange and dialogue with cooperation. Our common enemies are natural disasters and changes in the world; our common goal is the welfare of people on both sides of the strait,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt a time of complex international developments, we must engage in dialogue and exchange of views to move toward a peaceful goal,\u201d Lai said.<\/p>\n
Lai also expressed openness to restarting cross-strait talks, suggesting that tourist groups could serve as a potential channel for dialogue.<\/p>\n
Last month, Beijing began allowing tourist groups from Fujian province and Shanghai to visit Taiwan in a bid to strengthen exchanges after years of travel bans due to the Covid-19 pandemic and strained relations.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Beijing has once again labeled Taiwan leader William Lai Ching-te a \u201cdestroyer of peace\u201d in the Taiwan Strait following his recent statements reiterating his view that Taiwan and mainland China are \u201cnot subordinate to each other.\u201d The mainland\u2019s Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) said in a statement on Wednesday that while Lai claims to \u201cdesire peace […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7691,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ep_exclude_from_search":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[567,6171,6161,6169,3858,5514,6165,6164,4367,6170,6168,528,6166,6162,2086,6172,6163,781,6160,6167],"class_list":["post-7690","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-asia","tag-beijing","tag-cross-strait-dialogue","tag-cross-strait-relations","tag-democratic-system","tag-geopolitical-tensions","tag-lunar-new-year","tag-peoples-republic-of-china","tag-republic-of-china","tag-sovereignty","tag-sovereignty-disputes","tag-straits-exchange-foundation","tag-taiwan","tag-taiwan-affairs-office","tag-taiwan-independence","tag-taiwan-strait","tag-tourist-exchanges","tag-tsai-ing-wen","tag-us-china-relations","tag-william-lai","tag-zhu-fenglian"],"yoast_head":"\n