"Grave". China condemns Blinken's congratulations to new Taiwan leader
China on Tuesday condemned a congratulatory message sent by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken to Taiwan's new leader William Lai after he took office on Monday.
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Mundo Wang Wenbin
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin called Blinken's remarks "a gross interference" in China's internal affairs and "a flagrant violation" of the 'One China' principle.
At a press conference, Wang said the U.S. actions "gravely violate" Washington's own political commitment to "only maintain cultural, commercial and other unofficial relations" with Taipei.
"The U.S. actions send a wrong signal to Taiwan's separatist forces and will only escalate tensions in the Taiwan Strait," he said.
The Chinese diplomacy spokesperson revealed that Beijing has lodged a "formal complaint with the United States" and demanded that Washington "immediately rectify this mistake".
Beijing's reaction comes after Blinken sent a message of congratulations to Lai on Monday, shortly after he was sworn in as Taiwan's new leader.
In a statement, the top U.S. diplomat also said that Washington looks forward to working with Lai "to advance our shared interests and values".
Lai, who took over from Tsai Ing-wen (2016-2024), also from the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), said in his inaugural address that "peace has no price, and war has no winners", and made clear his intention to maintain the current status quo between the two sides of the Strait and not to declare Taiwan's independence.
William Lai also said that the Republic of China (Taiwan's official name) and the People's Republic of China "are not subordinate to each other" and that the sovereignty of the island belongs to its 23 million inhabitants.
"Some call this land the Republic of China, some call it Taiwan, and some call it Formosa. But no matter what name is used to refer to our nation, we will shine independently," he assured in his speech.
The territory of 23 million inhabitants operates as a sovereign political entity, with its own diplomacy and army, despite not being officially independent. Beijing considers Taiwan part of its territory and has already warned that a formal declaration of independence would be seen as a declaration of war.
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