Beijing Has No Room to Compromise on Taiwan, China’s Top Envoy Says

China has no room to compromise with those advocating “Taiwan independence,” Beijing’s top envoy in Washington said ahead of Saturday’s presidential election in the island.

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Published Jan 09, 2024 • 2 minute read

A square decorated with Taiwan flags ahead of the national day celebration in Taoyuan, Taiwan, on Wednesday, OCT 5, 2022. Photographer: Lam Yik Fei/Bloomberg Photo by Lam Yik Fei /Bloomberg

(Bloomberg) — China has no room to compromise with those advocating “Taiwan independence,” Beijing’s top envoy in Washington said ahead of Saturday’s presidential election in the island.

“No one cherishes more than the Chinese peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait. But separatism for ‘Taiwan independence’ is as incompatible with peace of the Strait as fire with water,” Ambassador Xie Feng said in virtual remarks to an event at the Carter Center in Atlanta on Tuesday. “The Chinese government simply has no room for compromise” with separatists, he said.

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Taiwan Vice President Lai Ching-te, from the Democratic Progressive Party, is running against main opposition rival, Hou Yu-ih of the Kuomintang, along with Taiwan People’s Party’s Ko Wen-je in the Jan. 13 election.

Lai has previously described himself as a “pragmatic worker for Taiwanese independence,” in comments that angered Beijing. In the campaign, he has been at pains to present himself as a continuity candidate, with no plans to disturb relations with Beijing.

Chinese government officials regularly state their opposition to “separatists” seeking independence for the island.

Trade Measures

Earlier Tuesday, China’s Ministry of Commerce said authorities are considering suspension of the tariff concessions for more products imported from Taiwan. The ministry has said that the ruling DPP failed to implement measures to lift restrictions on the mainland, engaged in political maneuvering to divert blame and shirk responsibilities.

Even so, a senior Chinese diplomat on Tuesday declined to specify what steps may be taken when asked how Beijing would react should Lai win the election. Liu Jianchao, head of the International Department of the Communist Party’s Central Committee, simply stated that China’s stance on Taiwan remains “clear, strong and unchanged,” speaking at an event organized by the US Council on Foreign Relations.

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Xie reiterated that Taiwan represents “the most important and sensitive” issue in China’s relations with the US, and called on the Biden administration to take concrete actions and “earnestly deliver on the statements” by American leaders of not supporting “Taiwan independence.” The US should work with China to maintain peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, he added.

According to Xie, “there are a lot of things” China and the US can coordinate and cooperate on. He named the Middle East, Ukraine and North Korea, as well as trade, energy, agriculture, law enforcement, education and people-to-people exchanges.

He took Boeing Co.’s business as an example of China’s “series of positive measures” to improve its ties with the US, saying that “all Boeing 737 MAX aircraft in China are back in service.”

—With assistance from Tom Hancock.

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