Back‘Stop suppression or risk conflict’: China warns US on Taiwan; defends ties with Russia
In his fiery press conference, China's Foreign Minister Qin Gang, asked US to respect and recognise China's claims over Taiwan.
PremiumIn the first press conference of China's foreign minister, Qin Gang, took a bellicose approach warning the United States of a bigger conflict and defended China's move on strengthening ties with Russia, amid the ongoing war between Moscow and Kyiv.
In his fiery press conference the China's Foreign Minister also asked US to respect and recognise China's claims over Taiwan.
China -Russia relation
In his first press conference, which was held on the sidelines of the “two sessions" political gathering, Qin Gang presented China and its relationship with Russia as a beacon of strength and stability, and the US and its allies as a source of tension and conflict, as reported by Guardian.
He said the ties between Beijing and Moscow “set an example for global foreign relations".
“With China and Russia working together, the world will have a driving force," he said. “The more unstable the world becomes the more imperative it is for China and Russia to steadily advance their relations." as quoted by Guardian.
US is epitome of suppression
Qin Gang during the press conference said the US side claimed that it wanted to outcompete China but didn’t seek conflict “but in reality, the US side’s so-called competition is all-out containment and suppression, a zero-sum game where you die and I live.
“If the US does not hit the brakes but continues to speed down the wrong path, no amount of guardrail can prevent derailing, and there will surely be conflict and confrontation."
Qin’s comments were in tandem with what China’s President, Xi Jinping, had said to political delegates on Monday, decrying what he called US-led “suppression" of China.
Stance on Taiwan
China views Taiwan as a breakaway province which will one day unite with it. Beijing has not ruled out the possible use of force to reunify the self-ruled island with the mainland.
“The Taiwan question is at the very core of China's core interests, the bedrock of the political foundation of China-US relations, and the first red line that must not be crossed in China-US relations," Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang said while addressing his first annual press conference on the sidelines of the Parliament session.
The US speaks of the sovereignty and independence of Ukraine, why not honour China's sovereignty, he said asserting that Taiwan is an integral part of China.
Questioning Washington’s repeated calls to Beijing not to supply weapons to Russia, Qin said "why does the US talk at length about respecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine while disrespecting China's sovereignty and territorial integrity on the Taiwan question?"
Flaunting the Chinese Constitution, claiming that the self-governing island Taiwan is part of it, Qin asked “why does the US ask China not to provide weapons for Russia while it keeps selling arms to Taiwan? Why does the US keep on professing the maintenance of regional peace and stability while covertly formulating a plan for the 'destruction of Taiwan'?" Qin said.
China-US relations
China-US relations have deteriorated sharply in recent years, and efforts to mend it were derailed earlier this year when the US shot down an alleged Chinese spy balloon, found flying in US airspace.
China claims that it was an accident caused by “force majeure" and that the US overreacted.
Qin blamed the US for the worsening relations, specifically citing the balloon incident, as well as tensions over Taiwan and the Ukraine war. He said the conflict in Ukraine seems to have been driven by “an invisible hand … using the Ukraine crisis to serve certain geopolitical agendas", pushing for the protraction and escalation of the conflict.
Former US speaker Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taiwan also triggered another fissure in the frail relation betweent he two countries.
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