China has responded sharply to rhetoric from politicians in Taipei ahead of the island’s presidential election.
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RT China is ready to give “a lot of space” for peaceful reunification with Taiwan but will not tolerate separatist activities, government spokesman Chen Binhua warned on Monday. The official was responding to comments from Taiwanese proindependence politicians ahead of a presidential election on the autonomous island.
According to media reports, Lai Chingte and Hsiao Bikhim, both of Taiwan’s current ruling Democratic Progressive Party, recently said that the island remains at risk of attack from the mainland.
Lai, who describes himself as a “Taiwan independence worker,” is running in January’s presidential election and has chosen Hsiao, a former envoy to the United States, as his running mate.
Chen, spokesman for the Taiwan Affairs Office of China’s State Council, said Beijing will not show leniency toward forces in Taiwan if they promote separatism.
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He pointed to Beijing’s 2005 antisecession law, which reaffirmed that China views Taiwan as an inalienable part of its territory. The law allows Beijing to use arbitrary, nonpeaceful means to achieve unification with the island, which has been selfgoverning since 1949 and the days of China’s civil war.
“I want to emphasize that Taiwan’s independence means war,” Chen said, condemning Lai and Hsiao as separatists. He also accused the two of distorting facts and minimizing the risks of separatist activities in order to deceive voters ahead of the 2024 election.
At a meeting with US President Joe Biden in California earlier this month, Chinese leader Xi Jinping warned that Taiwan may remain the most dangerous issue in relations between Washington and Beijing.
Under the Taiwan Enhanced Resilience Act of 2022, the U.S. government is authorized to spend up to $2 billion annually on military assistance to the island from 2023 to 2027. Taiwan has now ordered more than $14 billion worth of equipment from the US military.