The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday denounced Russian President Vladimir Putin for disparaging Taiwan’s sovereignty by saying that Taiwan issues are “China’s internal affairs.”
The ministry strongly condemned Putin’s “false” remarks that “undermined the sovereignty of the Republic of China,” ministry spokeswoman Joanne Ou (歐江安) told a news briefing.
Xinhua news agency cited Putin as telling Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) during a telephone call on Wednesday that Russia opposed any interference from external forces in China’s internal affairs, such as in Xinjiang, Hong Kong and Taiwan.
Screengrab from the Ministry of Foreign Affair’s virtual news conference
Ou said that Taiwanese elect their government in free and fair elections, adding that only the government in Taipei can represent Taiwan.
Beijing’s irredentist claims only cause resentment among Taiwanese, she said.
In the face of Beijing’s long-term threats to Taiwan, the government and the public are determined to fight Chinese intimidation, Ou said, adding that their determination is based on the belief that “God helps those who help themselves.”
The government will continue to strengthen Taiwan’s ties with like-minded democratic nations to solicit their support, she added.
By safeguarding freedom, democracy, human rights and the rule of law, Taiwan makes significant contributions to the development and stability of the global economy, she said, calling it a powerful tool to counter China’s authoritarian expansion.
The government will keep boosting Taiwan’s self-defense and asymmetric warfare capabilities, deepening its ties with the US to safeguard a rules-based international order, and promoting peace, stability and prosperity across the Taiwan Strait and in the Indo-Pacific region, she said.
The ministry also thanked the US for reiterating that it would ensure that Taiwan has the ability to defend itself and deter aggression.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken made the remarks in an interview with the US’ Public Broadcasting Service on Tuesday.
He said that China has over the past decade been “acting more repressively at home and more aggressively abroad,” including through actions against Taiwan, which are “potentially dangerous and destabilizing.”
He urged China to take into consideration the response that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine provoked from countries around the world.
Moreover, the US has promised Taiwan’s safety under its Taiwan Relations Act, Blinken said.
Additional reporting by CNA
Two US House of Representatives committees yesterday condemned China’s attempt to orchestrate a crash involving Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim’s (蕭美琴) car when she visited the Czech Republic last year as vice president-elect. Czech local media in March last year reported that a Chinese diplomat had run a red light while following Hsiao’s car from the airport, and Czech intelligence last week told local media that Chinese diplomats and agents had also planned to stage a demonstrative car collision. Hsiao on Saturday shared a Reuters news report on the incident through her account on social media platform X and wrote: “I
SHIFT PRIORITIES: The US should first help Taiwan respond to actions China is already taking, instead of focusing too heavily on deterring a large-scale invasion, an expert said US Air Force leaders on Thursday voiced concerns about the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) missile capabilities and its development of a “kill web,” and said that the US Department of Defense’s budget request for next year prioritizes bolstering defenses in the Indo-Pacific region due to the increasing threat posed by China. US experts said that a full-scale Chinese invasion of Taiwan is risky and unlikely, with Beijing more likely to pursue coercive tactics such as political warfare or blockades to achieve its goals. Senior air force and US Space Force leaders, including US Secretary of the Air Force Troy Meink and
‘BUILDING PARTNERSHIPS’: The US military’s aim is to continue to make any potential Chinese invasion more difficult than it already is, US General Ronald Clark said The likelihood of China invading Taiwan without contest is “very, very small” because the Taiwan Strait is under constant surveillance by multiple countries, a US general has said. General Ronald Clark, commanding officer of US Army Pacific (USARPAC), the US Army’s largest service component command, made the remarks during a dialogue hosted on Friday by Washington-based think tank the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Asked by the event host what the Chinese military has learned from its US counterpart over the years, Clark said that the first lesson is that the skill and will of US service members are “unmatched.” The second
Czech officials have confirmed that Chinese agents surveilled Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) during her visit to Prague in March 2024 and planned a collision with her car as part of an “unprecedented” provocation by Beijing in Europe. Czech Military Intelligence learned that their Chinese counterparts attempted to create conditions to carry out a demonstrative incident involving Hsiao, which “did not go beyond the preparation stage,” agency director Petr Bartovsky told Czech Radio in a report yesterday. In addition, a Chinese diplomat ran a red light to maintain surveillance of the Taiwanese
RSS