- China has told Australia that abiding by the “One China” principle is an important part of China-Australia relations in response to comments made by Defence Minister Peter Dutton on the weekend
- A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said China “will be reunified” with Taiwan, which Beijing considers a renegade Chinese province
- He suggested that though the Chinese government will strive for peaceful unification, it will not tolerate “Taiwan independence separatist activities”
- As such, he urged Australia to recognise the “high sensitivity” and avoid sending the “wrong signals” to Taiwan independence activists
- The comments come after Australian Defence Minister Peter Dutton warned of potential conflict between China and Taiwan
- He said Beijing is very clear about its unification goal, but Australia will work with its allies to try to maintain peace in the region
China has told Australia that abiding by the “One China” principle is an important part of China-Australia relations in response to comments made by Defence Minister Peter Dutton on the weekend.
The Australian Defence Minister warned of potential conflict between China and Taiwan in an interview with the ABC on Sunday, saying Beijing is very clear about its reunification goal.
Minister Dutton said given the militarization of bases across the region and animosity between China and Taiwan, conflict “should not be discounted”, but Australia will work with its allies to try to maintain peace in the region.
A spokesperson for China’s Foreign Minister, Wang Wenbin, reaffirmed the strong unification goal China seeks with Taiwan but said Australia needs to understand the “high sensitivity” around the issue.
Beijing considers Taiwan a renegade province of China and wants to unite it with the mainland.
“China must and will be reunified,” the Foreign Ministry spokesperson said. He seemed to suggest that a peaceful resolution — while favourable — was not the only option under consideration by the Chinese government.
“We are willing to do our best to strive for the prospect of peaceful reunification, but we will never leave any space for ‘Taiwan independence’ separatist activities in any form,” he said.
“It is hoped that the Australian side will fully recognize that the Taiwan question is highly sensitive, abide by the one-China principle, be prudent in its words and deeds, avoid sending any wrong signals to the ‘Taiwan independence’ separatist forces, and act in ways beneficial to peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and conducive to China-Australian relations.”
The spokesperson also touched on comments made by Minister Dutton regarding potential further acts on Australia-China trade deals — such as a 99-year lease on the Port of Darwin.
Australia canned two infrastructure deals between China and the Victorian government last week, and Minister Dutton said Australia’s foreign minister is reviewing the Port of Darwin deal and will take action if it’s found not to be in Australia’s national interest.
Beijing’s spokesperson said China hopes Australia will “look at bilateral cooperation in an objective and rational light” and that Canberra will stop “disrupting normal exchange” and cooperation with China.
Australia’s relationship with China has soured severely in recent years after the Australian government banned Huawei from its 5G network.
Things only got worse when, after Australia called for an investigation into the origins of COVID-19, China blocked the imports of coal and other goods from Australia in 2020.