China's unilateral demand for unification, backed by a continual military threat against Taiwan, is forcing the two sides of the Taiwan Strait to drift apart, President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) said yesterday.
Chen said the way China has treated Taiwan is totally opposite to the way West Germany treated East Germany before their unification and the way the integration of the EU has taken place, in which the principles of democracy, equality and peace were followed.
"China has deployed at least 400 tactical missiles along the coast of the Taiwan Strait, aiming them at Taiwan. This is a very serious military threat, which is like putting a gun to our head to force us to accept their unilateral demand for unification, in an attempt to swallow Taiwan up with the use of force," Chen said.
Chen made the remarks during a meeting with Professor Werner Pfennig from the Freie University of Berlin, Germany, who has come to Taiwan for an academic symposium hosted by Peacetime, a private group promoting cross-strait peace.
Citing the example of East Germany and West Germany before their unification, Chen said they were "two countries on each side" enjoying independent and equal sovereignty and were both members of the UN. "Also, West Germany never claimed East Germany as part of its territory or targeted missiles at East Germany."
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