The Chinese foreign ministry has accused the United States of “serious backsliding” following the US State Department’s decision to cut a line about Taiwan independence from its website.
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The website updated its fact sheet on relations with the island on Thursday, continuing to state its adherence to the “one China” policy but removing the phrase “we do not support Taiwan independence”.
The department said on Sunday that the update did not mean any major change in US policy towards Taiwan.
But ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said on Monday that the update represented “a serious backsliding in the US stance on Taiwan-related issues” and violated the one-China principle.
“This sends a very wrong signal to the ‘Taiwan independence’ separatist forces and is yet another example of the US stubbornly adhering to the erroneous policy of ‘using Taiwan to contain China’,” he said.
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“We urge the US to immediately correct its mistakes, earnestly uphold the one-China principle and the three joint communiqués, handle Taiwan-related issues with great caution, stop using Taiwan to contain China and cease the escalation of substantive US-Taiwan relations.”
He also said the US should stop supporting Taiwan’s efforts to have a bigger presence on the international stage. Washington should also avoid causing further damage to US-China relations and to peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, Guo said.