China's massive missile deployment targeting Taiwan is not the way to resolve the political impasse across the Strait, and to put the blame on Taipei instead of Beijing was nothing but "ridiculous," a visiting Danish academic said yesterday.
Klaus Carsten Pedersen, director of the Danish Foreign Policy Society, criticized a recent remark by China's Ambassador to the US Yang Jiechi (
Last Tuesday, Yang said Taiwan's authorities had been "most provocative" in trying to spark a confrontation with China.
"This sounds ridiculous to me," said Pedersen.
"The verbal aggressor, the potential military aggressor and the diplomatic aggressor is China.... It is China that has threatened to wage war," Pedersen said.
During his speech last week, Yang said that Taiwan was the source of instability in the region.
"I think it is something that has to be contained, not only by China, but by all peace-loving people in the world," Yang said.
While China has deployed an estimated 400 missiles along its southeastern coast, Yang said China's "necessary defense moves" were in the interest of the whole world and deserve US understanding and support.
Pedersen, who was in Taiwan for a week-long visit on the invitation of senior adviser to the president Peng Ming-min (
"We should tell the Chinese that this massive military threat is not acceptable. This is not an acceptable way to solve a political problem," Pedersen said.
Pedersen, who was a member of the Danish foreign minister's advisory council on European Policy from 1993 to until last year, said China's constant military threat toward Taiwan was "an infringement of human rights" for people in Taiwan.
Pedersen said those Europeans who have a clear understanding of cross-strait ties tend to side with Taiwan as the right to self-identification and the right to self-determination as promoted by many in Taiwan are values shared by Europeans.
"People have the right to determine where it belongs and the form of government it desires," he said.
Pedersen, who has been supervising Greenland on its foreign and security affairs since 2000, also said it's "dishonorable" for China to "lay claim on a little territory where people don't want them."
He also criticized the general understanding among EU members on the visa ban targeting Taiwan's top officials -- including the president, vice president, premier, foreign minister and defense minister.
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