Key Points:
- The statement from China’s Foreign Ministry came in response to reports that India and Taiwan were considering going forward with talks on a trade deal.
- India and Taiwan in 2018 already signed a bilateral investment agreement.
- One-China principle is a universal consensus of the international community, including India, says Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian.
- ‘There is only one China in the world, and Taiwan is an inalienable part of Chinese territory,’ says Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian
China warned India on Tuesday against initiating any talks with Taiwan which are trade related. It said that any such move from the country would violate the ONE – CHINA Policy that New Delhi has supported so far.
Beijing has aggressively reacted to developing ties between Taiwan and foreign countries including India.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said, “There is only one China in the world, and Taiwan is an inalienable part of Chinese territory,” while talking of the support in India on faking stronger links with Taiwan. China considers Taiwan as a renegade province.
During the daily briefing, Zhao said, “The ‘ONE-CHINA’ principle is a universal consent of the international community, including India,” when asked about the report of the Trade talks between India and Taiwan.
Adding to his previous statements, Zhao said that China opposes any form of official exchanges and legal signings between any country having diplomatic ties with Taiwan.
“The Indian side should strictly abide by the one-China principle and handle the Taiwan issue prudently and properly,”
Zhao insisted.
Tensions between China and Taiwan has risen recently over the issue of amalgamation – summarily rejected by the current Taiwanese dispensation led by President Tsai Ing-wen.
Indian media recently congratulated Taiwan for its National Day and posters were put of the same on the social media and even outside the Chinese embassy. The poster outside the embassy was taken down after the Chinese Embassy complained.
A social media campaign was also being run on October 10 after which a note was sent by the Chinese Embassy to journalists to ask them to not refer Taiwan as a COUNTRY while covering an event to be organised by the Taipei Economic and Cultural Centre (TECC) in India.
“We would like to remind our media friends that there is only one China in the world, and the Government of the People’s Republic of China is the sole legitimate government representing the whole of China,”
read the note.“There is a Free Media in India that reports on issues that THEY SEE FIT,” MEA (Ministry of External Affairs) responded to the note by the Chinese embassy.
China had warned India in February 2017 by lodging a complaint against the country. The complaint was because of the rare visit of a Taiwanese parliamentary delegation. China has even then, had cautioned New Delhi to follow the “ONE-CHINA” policy and to not have any official contact with Taipei.
