Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesman Zhao Lijian: Taiwan Is Part Of China; The PRC Is The Sole Legitimate Chinese Government; U.S. Must Adhere To The One-China Principle, Respect Our Territorial Integrity

In a statement posted to the CCTV Video News Agency YouTube video on August 29, 2022, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesman Zhao Lijian said that America's "flexing" in the Taiwan Strait under the "guise" of freedom of navigation is only a provocation and a deliberate attempt to undermine peace and stability in the region. He said that China urges the U.S. to stop "fudging" and distorting the One-China principle and to respect China's sovereignty and territorial integrity. He also emphasized that Taiwan is part of China and that the government of the People's Republic of China is the sole legal government of the Chinese people. In a second statement posted to the channel on the following day, Zhao reiterated his previous statement, adding that the efforts of Taiwanese separatists to solicit foreign support is the cause of tensions in the region.

Zhao Lijian: "The frequent flexing of force by U.S. warships under the guise of 'freedom of navigation' is not a commitment to freedom and openness, but a provocation seeking unconditional trespassing and a deliberate attempt to undermine regional peace and stability. China once again urges the U.S. side to immediately stop fudging, hollowing out and distorting the one-China principle, abide by the basic norms governing international relations of respecting other countries' sovereignty and territorial integrity and non-interference in their international affairs, earnestly observe the one-China principle and the three China-U.S. joint communiques, and refrain from being a troublemaker disturbing peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.

"I would like to stress that the one-China principle has a clear meaning, that is, there is only one China is the world and Taiwan is a part of China; the government of the People's Republic of China is the sole legal government representing the whole of China; there is no room for ambiguity on this key question. China hopes that the EU will continue to abide by the one-China principle and earnestly respect China's core interests and major concerns, as well as take concrete actions to abide by commitments on Taiwan question, so as to avoid moves affecting China-EU relations. I don't think it's a big deal that Chinese drones fly over Chinese territory.

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"It is the United States and Taiwan separatist forces, not China, that seek to change the status quo across the Taiwan Straits. There is only one China in the world. Taiwan is part of China. The Government of the People's Republic of China is the sole legal government representing the whole of China. The attempt of the Taiwan separatist forces to solicit foreign support from the United States and other countries to advance their 'independence' agenda is the root cause of the current tensions across the Taiwan Strait. The United States blatantly tries to use Taiwan to contain China under the pretext of maintaining stability in the West Pacific. How can it say what it is doing is not related to China and China-U.S. relations?

"If the United States truly wants to guide the situation towards greater stability, it should immediately return to the one-China principle and the three China-US joint communiqués and avoid sending any wrong signals to 'Taiwan independence' separatist forces."