中文
This is an editorial from China Daily.
In his virtual summit with President Xi Jinping on Tuesday, US President Joe Biden said that the United States' policy on Taiwan remains unchanged and his administration does not support "Taiwan independence".
The one-China principle and the three China-US joint communiques are the political foundation of China-US relations. Previous US administrations have all made clear commitments to the one-China policy.
That should drive home the message to the secessionists on the island that they should drop their delusions that the US will support them in their cause. They should refrain from making further provocations over the one-China principle, or prepare to face the consequences.
In their meeting, Xi talked at length about the Taiwan question, pointing out that the Taiwan authorities have made repeated attempts to look for US support for their independence agenda while some in the US also sought to use Taiwan to contain China.
Reiterating and reminding the US side of the fundamental principles that are the foundation of ties is both necessary and crucial because of the recent new wave of tensions resulting from the collusion between the Taiwan authorities and their US supporters. Their moves have undermined peace and stability in the Taiwan Straits, and risk making the island a flashpoint for a hot war.
The previous US administration under Donald Trump as well as the Biden administration have tried to use Taiwan as part of the US' maximum pressure campaign to contain China. But that has only encouraged and emboldened the secessionists on the island and their supporters to test the elasticity of Beijing's redline.
To the Taiwan authorities, the US support is indispensable as they clearly know they themselves alone cannot resist the inevitable reunification of the island with the motherland.
This is manifested in the Taiwan authorities' distorted interpretation of the Xi-Biden summit, in which they stressed the US "commitment to Taiwan" while turning a blind eye to President Biden underscoring that the US remains committed to the one-China policy, guided by the Taiwan Relations Act, the three joint communiques, and the Six Assurances, which explicitly do not recognize Taiwan as an independent country. This means the US support does not serve as a "blank check" as the DPP authorities seem to believe.
The ruling Democratic Progressive Party in Taiwan should know the Chinese mainland will be compelled to take resolute measures if, in their effort to push the redline, they look like breaking it.
It is high time the DPP authorities woke up from their daydream about counting on foreign support in their futile attempt to sever the island from the motherland. Their pursuit of "Taiwan independence" will only create more tension and instability in the Straits and do a disservice to people on the island.
