Taiwan Vows Fight Chinese Pressure

Chen Ming-tong, the chairman of the Mainland Affairs Council, told foreign reporters on Thursday that Taiwan is “an independent sovereign state, not a part of China.”

He said, “China has intensified its political and military pressure since Taiwan decided to hold a referendum to join the United Nations,” adding the pressure has blocked the normalization of the ties between China and Taiwan.

After the conclusion of the 3rd Session of the Ninth National People’s Congress (NPC), Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao Tuesday warned at a press conference that Taiwan is an inseparable part of China and that any attempts to break up China will fail.

On the Tibetan unrest, Chen said, “China should respect Tibetans’ choice.” He also said, “If the Chinese government uses military power to stop Taiwan’s effort to join the Unite Nations and gain independence, we will fight to the end.”

orionha@donga.com