Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi (王毅) on Thursday said Beijing did not “care that much” who was in power in Taiwan, but added that as president-elect Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) was elected based on Taiwan’s Constitution, she should abide by it — marking the first time that a Chinese official has publicly recognized the Constitution.
He told a forum at the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies that Taiwan is China’s “internal affair” and Tsai’s election victory should not come as “too big” a surprise.
When asked how Tsai’s election would impact Beijing-Taipei relations, Wang said: “It is not in my purview or responsibility, but let me say it is just a change of government in Taiwan — it’s a result of electoral politics, it’s something natural.”
“What we care about is, once someone has come into power, how he or she handles the cross-strait relationship,” Wang said, speaking through an interpreter.
What matters most is how Tsai maintains the peaceful development of cross-strait relations, Wang said.
Wang indicated that Beijing would be watching to see if Tsai would “recommit to the political foundation of cross-strait relations — the one China principle.”
“This is what we care about,” Wang said.
He said there was still time before the transition of power on May 20 for Tsai to make that commitment.
“I hope and expect that before that time comes, the person in power in Taiwan will indicate that she wants to pursue the peaceful development of cross-strait relations and that she will accept the provision in Taiwan’s own Constitution that the mainland and Taiwan belong to one and the same China,” Wang said.
“She was elected on the basis of the current Constitution of Taiwan, which still recognizes the mainland and Taiwan as one and the same China,” he said.
“It would be difficult to imagine that someone who is elected on the basis of that Constitution should try to do anything in violation of Taiwan’s own Constitution. If she should attempt to do that, the international community will not accept it, mainland China will not accept it and the people in Taiwan will not accept it, because they want to see continued peaceful development of cross-strait relations,” Wang added.
While he carefully avoided the use of Tsai’s name, it was notable that Wang did not mention the so-called “1992 consensus,” as Chinese officials often do, and was also the first time that a Chinese official has referred to the Constitution, as opposed to referring to “Taiwan’s laws and relevant regulations.” The so-called “1992 consensus,” a term former Mainland Affairs Council chairman Su Chi (蘇起) admitted making up in 2000, refers to a tacit understanding between the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Beijing that both sides of the Taiwan Strait acknowledge there is “one China,” with each side having its own interpretation of what “China” means.
Wang said Taiwanese want to see more Chinese visitors, pursue more business ties with China and live in a climate of peace and tranquility.
“The next government in Taiwan must think about these issues in a serious way,” Wang said.
Wang was ending a three-day Washington visit that included a meeting at the White House with US President Barack Obama and US National Security Advisor Susan Rice.
Wang met separately with US Secretary of State John Kerry and visited Capitol Hill for talks with members of the US Congress active in China-related issues.
Sources said that all discussions were dominated by the North Korea nuclear issue and China’s militarization of the South China Sea.
As previously reported by the Taipei Times, Wang raised the issue of Taiwan in his talks with Kerry.
Commenting on Wang’s remarks, center senior adviser for Asia Bonnie Glaser said Chinese officials have previously always insisted on referring to the “1992 consensus.”
As Tsai and her Democratic Progressive Party would not accept the “1992 consensus,” Wang’s statement might hint at a new direction in which the idea of “one China” might be achieved through the Constitution, Glaser said.
According to a report published by the Chinese-language United Evening News, former American Institute in Taiwan director Douglas Paal said his guess was that Wang’s remarks show that Beijing is unofficially consenting to Tsai’s idea of handling cross-strait issues within the framework of the Constitution.
Additional reporting by Reuters and Loa Iok-sin
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