U.S. attempts to play off Taiwan against China will be in vain

By Zhong Sheng

Facing the U.S. State Department’s approval of the sales of a package of weapons worth $2.22 billion to Taiwan on July 8, China expressed strong dissatisfaction and firm opposition.

The move of the U.S. has seriously violated the international law, the basic norms of international relations, the one-China principle and the three China-U.S. joint communiqués.

In addition, it is a flagrant interference in China’s domestic affairs that harms China’s sovereignty and security interests, poisons the development of military relations between China and the U.S., and gravely undermines the cross-strait relations and the peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.

Taiwan question concerns China’s sovereignty, territorial integrity, and core interests. The Chinese government has constantly reiterated its consistent and clear position on the question that the country has unshakeable will and resolve to safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity, and resolutely opposes any form of official or military contact between any country and Taiwan.

U.S. pursuing arms sale to Taiwan is a decades-old problem, and to resolve the problem, China and the U.S. jointly signed the August17 Communique in 1982.

However, over the past 30 some years, the U.S. side has repeatedly reneged on its promises by violating the provisions of the above joint communiqué, and shown a tendency to intensify such practices recently, which fully revealed its attempts to contain China by playing Taiwan card to play off Taiwan against China.  

Given the current cross-strait relations, the irresponsible practice of the U.S. has sent a wrong signal to “Taiwan independence” forces, aggravated the tension and complexity of the situation across the Taiwan Strait, and created greater uncertainties for China-U.S. relations.

Sound and stable development of China-U.S. relationship, one of the most important bilateral ties in the world, not only accords with the fundamental interests of the two peoples, but also the common expectation of the international community. The U.S. should not take the chances and keep walking on the wrong path.

The U.S. side must understand that selling arms to Taiwan will not be able to fill the huge gap of military strength between Chinese mainland and Taiwan.

Making the fourth plan to purchase weapons from the U.S., the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) of Taiwan is sacrificing the interests of the people in the region and the future of Taiwan for its own profits. It stirred up cross-straits conflict and escalated cross-straits confrontation, playing as a bargaining chip of the U.S. to suppress China.

Some experts in Taiwan described the arms deal as a “fool’s decision”, because the price is high and the weapons purchased are not able to secure Taiwan at all.

Chinese military has resolve, confidence, and capability to frustrate any form of secessionist attempts at “Taiwan independence” and external forces trying to interfere in China’s internal affairs.

No one should ever underestimate the Chinese government and people’s will and resolution to safeguard national sovereignty, territorial integrity, and core interests of the country. The DPP administration must understand that there’s no way out by relying on foreigners to build itself up, and what’s ahead are only failure and self-destruction.

 

Both sides of the Taiwan Strait belong to a community with a shared future, and no one is able to obstruct the prevailing trend of closer and better cross-strait relations.

Since the introduction of the 31 measures for promoting the cross-straits economic and cultural exchanges by Chinese mainland, more and more Taiwanese have come to the mainland working, living, and starting businesses. Today, it has become a widespread consensus among the majority of Taiwanese that “only when the cross-strait relations become better, will they have a better future”.

When the two sides of the Taiwan Strait are seeing more and more integrated social and economic development, the DPP administration, wasting the hard-earned money of the people and acting as a pawn of the U.S., will only be condemned by the people from both sides of the Strait.

It’s better for the U.S. to have a clear understanding of the current situation and seriously abide by the one-China principle and the three joint communiqués. It should immediately cancel the planned arms sale to Taiwan, stop selling weapons to Taiwan and terminate military contact with Taiwan, and exercise caution and prudence when handling Taiwan-related issues to avoid serious damage to China-US relations and cross-strait peace and stability.

(Zhong Sheng is a pen name used by People's Daily to express views on foreign policy.)