On 2 August, in disregard of China’s strong opposition and serious representations, Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi visited China’s Taiwan region. This is a serious violation of the one-China principle and the provisions of the three China-U.S. joint communiqués. It has a severe impact on the political foundation of China-U.S. relations, and seriously infringes upon China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. It gravely undermines peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, and sends a seriously wrong signal to the separatist forces for “Taiwan independence”. China firmly opposes and sternly condemns this, and here I would like to give the following introduction to the current situation in the Taiwan Strait:
There is but one China in the world, and Taiwan is part of China. This statement has a sound basis in history and jurisprudence, and is universally recognized by the international community. The earliest references to this effect are to be found, among others, in Seaboard Geographic Gazetteer compiled in the year 230 by Shen Ying of the State of Wu during the Three Kingdoms Period. The royal court of the Sui Dynasty (581-619) had on three occasions sent troops to Taiwan, called Liuqiu at that time. Starting from the Song and Yuan dynasties (960-1368), the imperial central governments of China all set up administrative bodies to exercise jurisdiction over Penghu and Taiwan. In 1684, a Taiwan prefecture administration was set up by the Qing court under the jurisdiction of Fujian Province. In 1885, Taiwan’s status was upgraded and it became the 20th province of China. Because of the war of aggression launched by Japan against China in 1894, Taiwan was forced to be ceded to Japan in 1895. However, with China’s anti-Japanese war victory, Taiwan successfully returned to the embrace of the motherland. Taiwan, like the other parts of China, was opened up and settled by the Chinese people of various nationalities, and remains the inalienable treasure island of the motherland. The history of and facts about Taiwan as China’s territory will not be changed with the course of time, and never fade away due to repudiation from the artful tongue.
From the jurisprudential perspective, both the Cairo Declaration in 1943 and the Potsdam Proclamation in 1945 required clearly that “all the territories Japan has stolen from China, such as Manchuria (Northeast China), Formosa (Taiwan), and The Pescadores (the Penghu Islands)”, shall be restored to China. The United Nations General Assembly Resolution 2758 of 1971 clearly recognized that there is but one China in the world, Taiwan is an inalienable part of China’s territory, and the Government of the People’s Republic of China is the sole legal government representing the whole of China. This is the confirmation by the international law that Taiwan is part of China, and the challenge to the one-China principle is the challenge to the post-war international order. Since the founding of the People’s Republic of China in 1949, 181 countries have established diplomatic relations with China on the basis of the one-China principle. The one-China principle is a universal consensus of the international community and a basic norm in international relations.
In 1979, the United States made a clear commitment in the China-U.S. Joint Communiqué on the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations — “The United States of America recognizes the Government of the People’s Republic of China as the sole legal Government of China. Within this context, the people of the United States will maintain cultural, commercial, and other unofficial relations with the people of Taiwan.” The principle, written down in black and white, is crystal clear, and cannot be repudiated. However, in disregard of China’s strong opposition and serious representations, the United States has backtracked on its commitments recently, supporting and conniving Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan, in an effort to contain and undermine China’s development, and obstruct the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation via playing “Taiwan card”. Such vicious intents cannot be tolerated and are bound to fail. What I would like to emphasize here is that the responsibility of the current tensions in the Taiwan Strait have to be fully borne by the US, which has committed seven deadly sins:
Sin 1: the US started the crisis and has escalated the political provocation. Congress, as a part of the U.S. Government, is inherently obliged to strictly observe the one-China policy of the U.S. Government and refrain from having any official exchanges with China’s Taiwan region. But as Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, Pelosi risked international condemnation and brazenly visited Taiwan, which seriously infringes upon China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and has aroused strong indignation among the Chinese people. This incident is orchestrated and provoked entirely by the U.S. side. The causes and the merits are crystal clear. The United States is the biggest destroyer of peace and the biggest culprit for the crisis across the Taiwan Strait.
Sin 2: the US has deliberately created tensions in the Taiwan Strait and threatened regional security. Taiwan is part of China, and the Taiwan question is purely an internal affair of China. But the U.S. side has blatantly meddled on Taiwan and kept creating tensions in the Taiwan Strait, threatening regional security. Even against the continued escalation of the situation across the Strait, the US still conducted military exercises around China, with USS Ronald Reagan aircraft carrier hovering around the Western Pacific. Didn’t it deliberately create tensions? Preliminary statistics show that since 2001, wars and military operations launched by the US have resulted in over 800,000 deaths and tens of millions displaced from home. After starting so many wars and killing so many civilians to preserve its hegemony, the US is now creating troubles in the Taiwan Strait. How could we possibly allow this to happen?
Sin 3: the US has been distorting facts and contemning public opinion of the international community. The US made the provocation first, and China has been compelled to take legitimate countermeasures, which are aimed at protecting our nation’s sovereignty and security, and are in line with both domestic law and international law. This is the reason why these justified measures were widely supported by the international community, including Afghanistan. By now more than 170 countries and many international organizations have spoken up for what is right, reaffirming their commitment to the one-China principle and expressing support for China in defending its sovereignty and territorial integrity. Both the President of the UN General Assembly and the UN Secretary-General have stated that the UN will continue to adhere to UNGA Resolution 2758, the centerpiece of which is the one-China principle. The claim by the U.S. side that China’s countermeasures were condemned by the international community is in total disregard of facts. Can the US itself represent the international community? Can’t it hear the voices from the international community for justice?
Sin 4: the US has linked the Taiwan question to Ukraine crisis in an effort to mislead the public. The Taiwan question and the Ukraine crisis are different in nature. Since the outbreak of the Ukraine crisis, the US has been constantly fanning the flame and slapping sanctions, exacerbating the global food and energy crisis and leading to great humanitarian disasters. Instead of learning a lesson from that, the US linked the Taiwan question to the Ukraine crisis, but the two are totally different from each other. The Ukraine crisis is the result of the geopolitical game between major countries, involving various sovereign states and even international organizations such as NATO and EU, while Taiwan has been part of China since ancient times, and the Taiwan question is entirely China’s internal affair. While the US has emphasized the principle of sovereignty over the issue of Ukraine, it has incessantly challenged the sovereignty of China and one-China principle over Taiwan, isn’t it the revelation of a flat-out double standard? In any aspect, the Taiwan question and the Ukraine issue are not comparable at all.
Sin 5: the US accused China of changing the status quo in the Taiwan Strait, but it actually acted like a thief crying “stop thief”. From the perspective of international law, “status quo” means a fact or political status in the certain period. What is the status quo of the Taiwan Strait? The status quo is that both sides of the Strait belong to one and the same China, Taiwan is part of China, and neither China’s sovereignty nor its territorial integrity is ever divided. Over the years, the US has been colluding with the Taiwan authorities, and elevating its substantive relations with Taiwan. It has strengthened military exchanges with Taiwan and emboldened the “Taiwan independence” separatist forces. If these are not changing the status quo, what are they? Refusing to recognize the 1992 Consensus, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities have insisted on pushing for “incremental independence”, and redoubled efforts to remove the Chinese identity of Taiwan. If these are not changing the status quo, what are they? Such accusation that China is changing status quo is the action by a thief crying “stop thief”, and fully reveals the hegemonic mindset and Cold War mentality of the US.
Sin 6: in disregard of China’s repeated representations, the US continues down the wrong path. Since four months ago, China has time and again made clear to the US through multiple channels and at various levels our stern position of firmly opposing Pelosi’s visit to the Taiwan region. We have been stressing that such a visit would seriously violate the one-China principle and the three Sino-US joint communiqués. We have also made clear that the Chinese side would not sit idly by in the event of such a visit; that the US side must not harbor any illusion or miscalculate on this; and that all consequences arising therefrom shall be borne by the US side. China has tried every means and done everything possible to warn about the consequences of such a visit. However, the US has chosen to pursue the wrong course of action in disregard of China’s dissuasion and warnings, and allowed Pelosi to visit Taiwan. The responsibility of the current situation in the Taiwan Strait must be fully borne by the US, otherwise the justice and truth would not prevail.
Sin 7: in disregard of jurisprudence, the US hollows out the one-China principle. There is but one China in the world, Taiwan is an inalienable part of China’s territory, and the Government of the People’s Republic of China is the sole legal government representing the whole of China. This is a basic norm of international relations confirmed by UNGA Resolution 2758. It is a commitment made by the US in the three China-US joint communiqués. The principle, written down in black and white, is crystal clear. There is no room for ambiguity or arbitrary interpretation. The US claims that there is no change in its one-China policy. But in fact, it has been undermining the one-China principle over the years. It has put into its one-China policy some unilateral stuff, including the “Taiwan Relations Act” and the “Six Assurances”. This is against international law. China never accepts it, and is always opposed to it. We always hold that to solve the current problems, the US should return to the one-China principle and the three Sino-US joint communiqués.
As the biggest warmonger in the world, the US is the biggest saboteur of global peace and the biggest troublemaker of regional stability. The ultimate goal of what the US did on Taiwan question is to pressurize and contain China’s development, and thus to preserve its hegemony. Over the years, wielding its hegemony and military power, the US has been fanning the flame all over the world, interfering in the internal affairs of other countries, creating wars and stirring up chaos, and profiteering from war. Especially the US launched the 20-year Afghan War to pursue its own interests, also committing “seven deadly sins” in Afghanistan and bringing severe disasters to its people and society.
Sin 1: the US infringed upon the sovereignty of Afghanistan. In 2001, in disregard of the will of the Afghan people, the US blatantly invaded Afghanistan under the pretext of “anti-terrorism”, interfered in its internal affairs and started its 20-year occupation of Afghanistan, severely impacting its core interests including sovereignty, security and development.
Sin 2: the US killed innocent civilians. Evidence shows that U.S. soldiers formed the infamous five-man “Kill Team” in Afghanistan, blowing up and shooting Afghan civilians at random just for fun, and cutting off the fingers of the dead as the booty. Statistics show that in the past two decades more than 100 000 innocent civilians were killed in the U.S. military operation, and more than 10 million people became refugees.
Sin 3: the US committed prisoner abuse. In 2016, the U.S. Department of Defense was pressured to release hundreds of photos of prisoner abuse by U.S. forces Iraq and Afghanistan. In 2020, the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) noted that nearly 100 Afghan prisoners were tortured, abused and even raped by the U.S. soldiers during the interrogation.
Sin 4: the US adopted double standards in the fight against terrorism. The amount of terrorist organizations in Afghanistan has increased to more than 20 from less than ten in 2001. In disregard of Afghanistan’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, the U.S. drones are still patrolling over Afghanistan’s airspace. Anti-terrorism shall not be conducted at the cost of other countries’ sovereignty.
Sin 5: the American political system and values brought chaos. The US promoted democratic system and Western value in Afghanistan, which did not conform to Afghanistan’s national conditions, the will of its people and the Afghan culture, resulting in frequent wars over the years and administrative corruption, and it was the Afghan people that suffered.
Sin 6: the US pursued its own interests only. The 20-year occupation of Afghanistan by the US did not help the country realize its social development, while the war has destroyed its infrastructure, leading to more difficulties in its economic development and people’s livelihood. In August 2021, to pursue its own interests, the US withdrew its troops from Afghanistan in a hasty manner, and the Kabul Moment became a disgrace in the history, leaving hardships and difficulties to the Afghan people.
Sin 7: the US has exacerbated hardships of the Afghan people. After the withdrawal of the U.S. troops, in disregard of the Afghan people’s livelihood, the US continues its economic and financial sanctions on Afghanistan, freezing the assets of the Afghan people, and stealing from the pockets of a poor country. As a result, the Afghan people could not buy the disaster relief materials and basic necessities with their own money, and the humanitarian disasters are manually exacerbated.
Both China and Afghanistan once suffered severely from colonialism and invasion. Since the modern times began, China experienced hardships and difficulties under the colonial invasion by Western powers, the killing, arson attacks and looting committed by the Eight-Power Allied Forces in Beijing, including the US, still makes Chinese people feel outraged today. After its founding, the Communist Party of China (CPC) led the Chinese people in the unyielding struggles, eventually driving all the invaders out of China and realizing national independence. After a century of struggles, China has scored achievements that captured the attention of the world, embraced boundless development opportunities, and is now striding towards the goal of national rejuvenation. China today is no longer what it used to be. Taiwan’s return to motherland is the prevailing trend, and the Chinese people will not be scared by evils, misled by fallacies, nor intimidated by pressure. We have confidence, determination and capability in realizing China’s complete reunification and national rejuvenation.
Currently Afghanistan stands at a critical stage of transforming from chaos to governance, and Afghan people are facing a historic opportunity to truly master its own destiny and to be permanently free from foreign interference and invasion. As Afghanistan’s good neighbour, brother and partner, China will stand firm on the concept of a community with a shared future for mankind. Guided by the Global Development Initiative and Global Security Initiative, China will substantially enhance bilateral cooperation in all areas. Together with the industrious, brave and tenacious Afghan people, it will promote the realization peace, stability and independent development in Afghanistan at an early date. I believe that in this process, both China and Afghanistan, as well as the international community as a whole, will keep strengthening the voice and power for the right way forward, opposing the hegemony and bullying, and defending fairness and justice. The farce of meddling on Taiwan by the US, as well as the tragedy brought to the Afghan people resulting from the U.S. invasion, running counter to the tide of history, will never happen again.
