Red Line and Taiwan

October 28, 2021

by Chris Faure for the Saker Blog

Every English media in China today ledes with the news that in an interview with CNN, the leader of the Taiwan region, Tsai Ing-wen, admitted to the presence of US military trainers on the island for the first time.  The first reports stated ‘soldiers’, but were soon edited to ‘trainers’.

Global Times bellowed back:  Redline: US troops must not station in Taiwan

In People’s Daily Online it is expressed like this: Commentary: Washington should stop playing with fire on Taiwan

It is wall-to-wall commentary in the media.  As The Saker expresses for the case of the presumed Bayraktar strike, Russia is compelled to act as if it happened, for political reasons.

In this case, China must also act.  Their people are up in arms and the media is writing up to three editorials in one day on this issue alone.

In Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Wang Wenbin’s Regular Press Conference today, he confirmed the official position but with a throwaway line attached.  The readout is:

The one-China principle is the political foundation of China-US relations. On the Taiwan question, the US should abide by the one-China principle and the stipulations of the three China-US joint communiqués, rather than unilaterally concoct anything. We firmly oppose official and military ties in any form between the US and the Taiwan region, and oppose the US’ interference in China’s internal affairs. The US vessels have repeatedly flexed its muscles to make provocations and stir up troubles in the Taiwan Strait in recent times, sending gravely wrong signals to the “Taiwan independence” forces and threatening cross-Strait peace and stability. The international community is clear-eyed about who is engaging in “coercion” on the Taiwan question.

The cross-Strait reunification is an overriding historical trend and the right course, while “Taiwan independence” is a retrogression leading to a dead end. The DPP authorities’ acts of seeking “Taiwan independence” can not change the iron-clad fact that Taiwan is a part of China, neither will it shake the international community’s universal and firm commitment to the one-China principle. Those who forget their heritage, betray their motherland, and seek to split the country will come to no good end.

Seeking “Taiwan independence” leads to a dead end. So does supporting “Taiwan independence”. No country and no one should underestimate the resolve, the will, and the ability of the Chinese people to defend their national sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Otherwise, they will suffer another defeat.

This news comes against the backdrop of a call to boycott the Olympics and also Blinken’s issued statement:  “Taiwan’s meaningful participation in the UN system is not a political issue, but a pragmatic one”.

This led to an immediate statement by Ma Xiaoguang, a spokesman for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council:

The UN is an international intergovernmental organization composed of sovereign states. Taiwan is a part of China and the People’s Republic of China is the only legitimate government representing the whole of China.  Taiwan has no right to join the UN.

This is the political pressure and efforts at destabilization as China enters its last 100 days to prepare for the Olympics.

What will be the response?  I don’t know but there will be one.  The media asks for ‘punishment’ for Tsai Ing-wen.

River to Sea Uprooted Palestinian   

The views expressed in this article are the sole responsibility of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the Blog!