"Tsai Ing-wen Lacks Power to Break One China Principle"…China Continues Criticism Campaign

[Image source=EPA Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Beijing=Special Correspondent Park Sun-mi] China continues its criticism against Tsai Ing-wen, the Taiwanese President who began her second term, for rejecting the "One Country, Two Systems" policy in her inauguration speech the day before.

On the 21st, China's state-run newspapers Global Times and Huanqiu Shibao editorialized that "President Tsai's inauguration speech was clich?d and offered nothing new regarding cross-strait (China-Taiwan) issues," adding, "Although she mentioned 'peace,' she showed a stronger intention to align Taiwan more closely with the United States and confront China."

The newspapers pointed out that "President Tsai's Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government has strategically miscalculated," stating, "The DPP believes that the U.S. view of China as a major strategic competitor benefits Taiwan independence. They seek U.S. support by acting as America's proxy. They ignore the 'One China' principle, a fundamental cornerstone of the world order, and pursue independence."

They further explained, "President Tsai does not have the power to break the 'One China' framework, which is one of the global political structures. The U.S. has no interest in breaking 'One China'; it only wants to use it as leverage to attack China." The newspapers warned that Taiwan is playing a dangerous game as a U.S. proxy, advising, "In the fight between two large elephants, Taiwan is not a tiger or a hyena but merely an ant. It must act very cautiously."

The possibility that China may continue military pressure in the Taiwan Strait was also left open. The newspapers warned, "Although the U.S. continues to pressure China, the military power balance in the Taiwan Strait is the opposite. If China decides to respond militarily to Taiwan's provocative actions, the U.S. will not be able to stop it."

This strong criticism from Chinese state media toward Taiwan and the U.S. aligns with the official stance announced by the Chinese government the day before.

Ma Xiaoguang, spokesperson for China's Taiwan Affairs Office, regarding President Tsai's re-inauguration speech, said, "The Taiwanese DPP does not recognize the '1992 Consensus' (Jiuer Gongshi, 九二共識), which agrees on the 'One China' principle, and is destroying the political foundation for peaceful development. They are inviting external forces to disrupt Taiwan's peace," he pointed out. He added, "We have sufficient capability to defend national sovereignty and territorial integrity and will never tolerate any acts of national division or interference by external forces in China's internal affairs."

Zhao Lijian, spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, also stated regarding President Tsai's inauguration speech that "Taiwan is an inseparable part of China," emphasizing that "the One China principle is a fundamental norm in international relations and a principle recognized by the international community." He also criticized U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's congratulatory statement on the Taiwanese president's inauguration, saying, "it seriously violates the One China principle and the three joint communiques between China and the U.S. (which include mutual non-interference and reduction of arms sales to Taiwan) and interferes in China's internal affairs."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.