China is deliberately misinterpreting World War II documents in an attempt to coerce Taiwan, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said today, following yesterday’s call between Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and US President Donald Trump.
During the call, Xi said that Taiwan’s return to China was an “integral part of the postwar international order,” China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
Photo: Taipei Times
Taiwan is a sovereign and independent state that is not subordinate to the People’s Republic of China (PRC), the MOFA said.
After the call, Trump did not mention Taiwan in his public statement, though diplomatic officials said that the MOFA is confirming with the US the content of the call and any remarks made in reference to Taiwan.
Communication channels between the US and Taiwan remain smooth, though relevant details would not be made public, MOFA spokesperson Hsiao Kuang-wei (蕭光偉) said in a press conference in Taipei today.
The ministry would continue to monitor US-China dialogue and maintain close contact with the US to ensure regional peace and stability, he said.
The American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) has publicly reaffirmed the US’ position on Taiwan and said that Beijing is willfully misinterpreting wartime documents, he added.
Beijing’s narrative is entirely false and aims to isolate Taiwan internationally and limit other nations’ sovereign choice to interact with Taiwan, he said.
China is driven by authoritarian expansionism and has repeatedly sought to intimidate Taiwan, Japan and other neighboring countries, in violation of the UN Charter’s prohibition of threats or use of force in international relations and in defiance of the international order centered on peaceful resolution, the ministry said.
Hsiao called on the international community to remain highly vigilant and to jointly counter China’s attempts to use false narratives and lawfare to strengthen its argument that Taiwan is purely an internal matter and to seek false legal justification for the use of force against Taiwan.
None of the WWII documents, including the Cairo Declaration, the Potsdam Declaration and the San Francisco Peace Treaty, nor subsequent UN resolutions determine Taiwan’s political status, Presidential Office spokeswoman Karen Kuo (郭雅慧) said today.
As a responsible member of the international community, Taiwan would continue working with like-minded partners to maintain the cross-strait status quo and safeguard regional peace, stability and prosperity, she added.
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