Wang Wenbin, the spokesperson of the Chinese Foreign Ministry. Photo: VCG

In response to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken's Taiwan-related remarks, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said on Tuesday that peaceful reunification remains the first choice of the Communist Party of China and the Chinese government to resolve the Taiwan question, while the US has repeatedly violated its commitment to recognize the principle that there is only one China in the world and the island of Taiwan is part of China.

China has made the decision to seize Taiwan on a "much faster timeline" than previously thought, said Blinken on Monday, who added in another event that peace and stability across the Straits had been successfully maintained for decades, but Beijing has now changed its approach, according to media reports.

Wang noted that the US government made a clear commitment in the Joint Communiqué on the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations that "there is only one China in the world and Taiwan is part of China, and the United States of America recognizes the Government of the People's Republic of China as the sole legal government of China."

The US has promised to maintain only unofficial relations with the island of Taiwan, while it has greatly relaxed official exchanges between both sides in recent years, with the US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi even visiting the island despite strong opposition from the Chinese government, Wang said.

The spokesperson noted that the US promised to gradually reduce arms sales to the island, but in fact, since the establishment of the diplomatic relationship between China and the US, the scale and performance of US arms sales to the island of Taiwan have continued to increase and the total amount has exceeded $70 billion.

Blinken linked US' one-China policy to China's commitment to a peaceful resolution of the Taiwan question, and made it the core of its policy. "This is not a reaffirmation of a commitment the three China-US joint communiqués, but a falsification of it," said Wang.

The resolution of the Taiwan question is a matter for the Chinese people to decide. "We are ready to create broad space for peaceful reunification, but we will never leave any room for secessionist activities seeking 'Taiwan independence' in any form," Wang said. The US should honor its commitment and put into practice its statement that it does not support "Taiwan independence," he added.

Global Times