China urges US to cease official exchanges with Taiwan: FM spokesperson

BEIJING - A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson on Tuesday urged the United States to strictly abide by the one-China principle and the three China-US joint communiques, and cease any form of official exchanges with Taiwan.

Spokesperson Zhao Lijian made the remarks at a regular news briefing in response to a query on the so-called US-Taiwan Initiative on 21st-Century Trade.

"China firmly opposes all forms of official interaction with the Taiwan region by countries having diplomatic ties with China, including negotiating or concluding agreements with implications of sovereignty and of an official nature. This position is consistent and clear," Zhao noted.

There is but one China in the world, Zhao said, and Taiwan is an inalienable part of China's territory. The government of the People's Republic of China is the sole legal government representing the whole of China, he added.

The spokesman said that the United States must abide by the one-China principle and the stipulations of the three China-US joint communiques, halt all forms of official interaction with Taiwan, stop negotiating agreements with implications of sovereignty and of an official nature, and refrain from sending any wrong signals to the "Taiwan independence" separatist forces.

"We would also like to make it clear to Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party authorities that they need to give up at once on the idea that they could seek independence with US support, because the more ambitious they are, the more bitter their failure will be," Zhao added.