The European Parliament-Taiwan Friendship Group yesterday warned against the implications of mounting cross-strait tensions for regional peace, calling China’s “one country, two systems” formula a failed model in a letter to EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini.
The letter, signed by group chairman Werner Langen, vice chairman Andrey Kovatchev and former vice chairs Hans van Baalen and Laima Andrikiene, expressed concern over Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) call on Jan. 2 for cross-strait unification, the Taipei Representative Office in the EU and Belgium said yesterday.
In a speech in Beijing marking the 40th anniversary of the 1979 “Message to Compatriots in Taiwan,” Xi said: “The history of the development of cross-strait relations has proven that no individual or force can change the historical and de jure sense of facts that Taiwan is a part of China and that both sides of the Taiwan Strait belong to the same China.”
Photo: Lu Yi-hsuan, Taipei Times
He said non-peaceful means would only target external forces that resist, and the “extremely few pro-Taiwan independence separatists” and their movements.
The letter said that the Chinese leader’s proposal of the “one country, two systems” framework for Taiwan has proven to be a failure in Hong Kong, as Beijing continues to tighten its grip on the territory.
President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) administration and the majority of Taiwanese oppose the framework, it said.
In response to Xi’s speech, Tsai said that in a democracy, political negotiations require a mandate from the people.
The letter urged Tsai and Beijing to seek ways to resolve their differences in a peaceful manner.
It asked Mogherini and the EU to closely follow the development of cross-strait relations and be aware of their implications on regional peace.
The group was happy to see the EU reiterating its policy to maintain relations with Taiwan and supporting democratic values, it said, adding that it hopes the EU would continue to support peace and stability.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement expressing gratitude for the group’s support.
Previously this month the ministry has also thanked members of the US Congress, US Senate and House of Representatives, including a separate statement thanking US senators Cory Gardner and Marco Rubio.
The ministry welcomes and appreciates consistent, firm and bipartisan support for Taiwan, it said in English-language messages on its Web site.
Additional reporting by Lu Yi-hsuan
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