The Chinese People’s Liberation Army conducted live-fire drills near Taiwan in response to U.S. House Speaker Pelosi’s sneaky visit to Taiwan island. China also suspended cooperation with the U.S. in climate change and other fields. The great majority of the international community including international organizations such as the United Nations have expressed their adherence to the one-China principle in the face of U.S.’s provocation.
On August 9, 2022, Vice Foreign Minister Ma Zhaoxu took questions from CGTN’s Liu Xin on Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan. The interview comes at a key moment and gives direct response to many of the claims made by the U.S.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n6mgyy7i5lM
Has the U.S.’s one-China policy changed?
U.S. claims: There is no change to its one-China policy, and Pelosi’s visit does not violate the one-China policy.
Ma’s response: U.S. has been undermining the one-China principle over the years. It has put into its one-China policy some unilateral stuff, including the “Taiwan Relations Act” and the “Six Assurances.”
The three joint communiqués provide that the U.S. can only maintain cultural, commercial, and other unofficial relations with Taiwan. Pelosi is the number three figure in the U.S. Government.
During her stay in Taiwan, she was speaking on behalf of the U.S. from the beginning to the end. Even she herself admits that it is an official visit.
Who is changing to the status quo?
U.S. claims: The change to the status quo that’s prevailed with regard to Taiwan for more than 40 years is coming from Beijing, not from the U.S. China’s military exercises and crossing of the median line of the Taiwan Strait are overreactions that have escalated the situation and threatened regional peace and stability.
Ma’s response: It is not China who is changing the status quo, but the U.S. and the “Taiwan independence” separatist forces.
Over the years, the U.S. has been colluding with the Taiwan authorities, and elevating its substantive relations with Taiwan.
It has sold large amounts of weapons to Taiwan, helped it develop so-called “asymmetric capabilities,” and emboldened the “Taiwan independence” separatist forces.
Refusing to recognize the 1992 Consensus, the DPP authorities have insisted on pushing for “incremental independence,” and redoubled efforts to remove the Chinese identity of Taiwan.
It is the U.S. that is threatening peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait. Taiwan is part of China’s territory. There is no such thing as a median line in the Strait.
The U.S. and its allies often come to the adjacent waters of China, flexing muscles, and stirring up trouble. They conduct up to a hundred military exercises each year. They, instead of someone else, are the ones that overreact and escalate the situation.
About China’s countermeasures
U.S. claims: China’s decision to suspend cooperation with the U.S. in multiple areas does not punish Washington but the whole world. If China continues to take more countermeasures, the U.S. will be forced to respond, which may lead to a spiral of escalation.
Ma’s response: China’s decision to cancel or suspend cooperation in some areas does not come without warning. We say what we mean and mean what we say. There is no reason why the U.S. should feel surprised or upset.
It has been proved time and again that the U.S. is the biggest troublemaker of cross-Strait peace and regional stability.
If the international community allows the U.S. to do what it wants, the UN Charter will be just a sheet of paper, and the law of the jungle will prevail. In the end, it will be the developing countries that suffer.
Compare Taiwan question to Ukraine crisis?
U.S. claims: From China’s military drills in the Taiwan Strait to Russia’s “invasion” of Ukraine, the U.S. claims these will be denounced by the international community.
Ma’s response: The Taiwan question is entirely China’s internal affair. It is different from the Ukraine issue.
More than 170 countries and many international organizations have spoken up for what is right, reaffirming their commitment to the one-China principle and expressing support for China in defending its sovereignty and territorial integrity. Both the President of the UN General Assembly and the UN Secretary-General have stated that the UN will continue to adhere to UNGA Resolution 2758, the centerpiece of which is the one-China principle. Compared with over 170 countries, what do G7 think they are? Who cares what they say?
