Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Mao Ning Photo: Ministry of Foreign Affairs

After Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang urged the US to drop its all-round suppression and containment of China and reiterated China's untouchable redlines regarding the Taiwan question, the US responded with hypocritical rhetoric, but is yet to stop hollowing out the one-China principle, a hypocritical move which may bring more turmoil to China-US relations. 

US media outlets recently disclosed that US House speaker Kevin McCarthy will meet with Taiwan regional leader Tsai Ing-wen in the US. On Tuesday, McCarthy confirmed his plans to meet with Tsai in the US. 

Ironically, White House national security spokesperson John Kirby said Tuesday that the US "respected the one-China policy" and did not want to see a change to the "status quo" of the Taiwan Straits, Reuters reported. Analysts said that McCarthy's provocative actions have made Kirby's words suspicious and brought more concerns to the strained China-US relations.

We are gravely concerned over this and have made serious démarches to the US side demanding clarification, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said at a press conference on Wednesday. 

As Foreign Minister Qin Gang made clear at yesterday's press conference held on the margins of the "two sessions", Taiwan is part of the sacred territory of the People's Republic of China… The Taiwan question is the core of the core interests of China, the bedrock of the political foundation of China-US relations, and the first red line that must not be crossed in China-US relations, said Mao. 

We urge the US to abide by the three China-US joint communiqués, deliver on US leaders' commitment of not supporting "Taiwan independence" or "two Chinas" or "one China, one Taiwan", stop all forms of official interaction with Taiwan, stop upgrading its substantive exchanges with the region, and stop obscuring and hollowing out the one-China principle, Mao said. 

If McCarthy's meeting with Tsai goes ahead, it will strike another heavy blow to China-US relations and with the political foundation being repeatedly sabotaged by US politicians, bilateral relations will be in turmoil, Li Haidong, a professor at the Institute of International Relations at the China Foreign Affairs University, told the Global Times. 

China took firm countermeasures when McCarthy's predecessor Nancy Pelosi made a highly provocative visit to the island of Taiwan in August 2022, including organizing military drills surrounding the island and cutting several military-to-military communication channels and other areas of bilateral dialogue with the US. 

As US House Speaker, McCarthy is second in the US presidential line of succession and his plan to meet with Tsai is a severe provocation and interference in China's internal affairs no matter what excuses US government and politicians make, Diao Daming, an associate professor at the Renmin University of China in Beijing, told the Global Times. 

In McCarthy's political calculation, China-US relations are not his concern. McCarthy only cares about how to mess with bilateral relations to maximize his own interests and make trouble for the Biden administration, Diao said. 

Analysts slammed US President Joe Biden's conniving over Pelosi's visit to the island of Taiwan and urged the US president to fulfill his promises to China instead of turning a blind eye to McCarthy's provocation of China's core interests. 

The US claimed it is seeking competition, not conflict with China, but what it has done is the opposite. The Biden administration uses the tactic of "saying one thing and doing another" to deal with relations with China, attempting to fool the world - this also unveils its mentality of attempting to maintain hegemony but trying to avoid being deeply involved with thorny questions, Diao said. 

Foreign Minister Qin pointed out at his Tuesday press conference that the US' so-called competition with China is in fact an all-round suppression and containment, a zero-sum game where one lives and the other dies. 

Like a dishonest runner in an Olympic race, the US does not want to do its best but wants to trip its rival or even make the other run in the Paralympics. "This is not fair, but absolute foul play!" Qin remarked. 

Given its complicated domestic politics, some hawkish politicians' Cold War mentality and the high possibility of Biden administration's continuous playing with fire, China-US relations are on a bumpier road, Li said.