Taiwan yesterday criticized Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi (王毅) for “intentionally misinterpreting” a 1971 UN resolution to misrepresent Taiwan’s status to the global community.
In his address on Saturday to the UN General Assembly, Wang cited Resolution 2758 as a basis for Beijing’s claim that Taiwan is part of China.
He said that Beijing considers Taiwan an “inseparable part of China’s territory since ancient times.”
Photo: Reuters
“Only when China is completely reunified can there be enduring peace across the Taiwan Strait... Any move to obstruct China’s reunification is bound to be crushed by the wheels of history,” Wang said.
General Assembly Resolution 2758 ended the concept of “two Chinas” or “one China and one Taiwan,” he said.
“The ‘one China’ principle has become the basic norm in international relations and a consensus in the international community,” he said. “When entering into diplomatic relations with China, 181 countries all recognized and have accepted that there is one China in the world and Taiwan is part of China.”
In Taipei, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement that the resolution transferred China’s seat in the UN from representatives of former president Chiang Kai-shek’s (蔣介石) government to the People’s Republic of China (PRC) without mention of Taiwan.
The resolution did not grant Beijing the right to represent the people or territory of Taiwan in the UN, nor did it say that Taiwan is part of the PRC, it added.
Beijing has been purposely and continually making a “twisted and incorrect political interpretation” of historical documents, it said.
Linking the resolution with Beijing’s “one China” principle isabsurd, it said, adding that the so-called principle does not represent international consensus.
China is resorting to every conceivable means to cut off Taiwan’s international participation and obstruct Taiwan’s opportunities to contribute to the international community, it said.
The Mainland Affairs Council also voiced protest against Wang’s statement, saying that Taiwan “has never belonged to the PRC for one day from the viewpoints of historical fact, international law and reality.”
“Taiwan’s future will be decided by the 23 million Taiwanese people,” it said, adding that the nation would never accept “any political premise or the final status of people across the Taiwan Strait unilaterally decided by Beijing.”
Adopted by the UN General Assembly on Oct. 25, 1971, Resolution 2758 recognized the representatives of the PRC government “as the only legitimate representatives of China to the United Nations.”
The wording reads: “[The UN decides] to expel forthwith the representatives of Chiang Kai-shek from the place which they unlawfully occupy at the UN and in all the organizations related to it.”
Since then, the Republic of China has not been a member of the UN, and efforts to participate in UN-affiliated organizations have been repeatedly thwarted by Beijing.
SEE SAINT ON PAGE 3
Beijing’s continued provocations in the Taiwan Strait reveal its intention to unilaterally change the “status quo” in the area, the US Department of State said on Saturday, calling for a peaceful resolution to cross-strait issues. The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) reported that four China Coast Guard patrol vessels entered restricted and prohibited waters near Kinmen County on Friday and again on Saturday. A State Department spokesperson said that Washington was aware of the incidents, and urged all parties to exercise restraint and refrain from unilaterally changing the “status quo.” “Maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait is in line with our [the
EXTENDED RANGE: Hsiung Sheng missiles, 100 of which might be deployed by the end of the year, could reach Chinese command posts and airport runways, a source said A NT$16.9 billion (US$534.93 million) project to upgrade the military’s missile defense systems would be completed this year, allowing the deployment of at least 100 long-range Hsiung Sheng missiles and providing more deterrence against China, military sources said on Saturday. Hsiung Sheng missiles are an extended-range version of the Hsiung Feng IIE (HF-2E) surface-to-surface cruise missile, and are believed to have a range of up to 1,200km, which would allow them to hit targets well inside China. They went into mass production in 2022, the sources said. The project is part of a special budget for the Ministry of National Defense aimed at
READY TO WORK: Taiwan is eager to cooperate and is hopeful that like-minded states will continue to advocate for its inclusion in regional organizations, Lai said Maintaining the “status quo” in the Taiwan Strait, and peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region must be a top priority, president-elect William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday after meeting with a delegation of US academics. Leaders of the G7, US President Joe Biden and other international heads of state have voiced concerns about the situation in the Strait, as stability in the region is necessary for a safe, peaceful and prosperous world, Lai said. The vice president, who is to be inaugurated in May, welcomed the delegation and thanked them for their support for Taiwan and issues concerning the Strait. The international community
COOPERATION: Two crewmembers from a Chinese fishing boat that sank off Kinmen were rescued, two were found dead and another two were still missing at press time The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) was yesterday working with Chinese rescuers to find two missing crewmembers from a Chinese fishing boat that sank southwest of Kinmen County yesterday, killing two crew. The joint operation managed to rescue two of the boat’s six crewmembers, but two were already dead when they were pulled from the water, the agency said in a statement. Rescuers are still searching for two others from the Min Long Yu 61222, a boat registered in China’s Fujian Province that capsized and sank 1.03 nautical miles (1.9km) southwest of Dongding Island (東碇), it added. CGA Director-General Chou Mei-wu (周美伍) told a