Taiwan has no right to join UN: Chinese spokesperson

BEIJING -- A Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson on Tuesday reiterated that Taiwan has no basis, reason or right to join the UN or other international organizations that require statehood.

It was reported that the Taiwan authorities listed "four appeals" on Taiwan's UN participation and claimed that they would invite "diplomatic allies" to submit a joint letter to the UN Secretary-General urging him to rectify the UN's erroneous interpretation of UNGA Resolution 2758 at a recent press briefing.

In response, Spokesperson Mao Ning told a daily news briefing that Taiwan is part of China. Despite that fact and legal basis, Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities have been distorting UNGA Resolution 2758, openly challenging the internationally recognized one-China principle, and spinning lies to pursue "Taiwan independence". These are extremely dangerous separatist provocations.

Noting the 26th session of the United Nations General Assembly adopted Resolution 2758 with an overwhelming majority on October 25 of 1971, which "decides to restore all its rights to the People's Republic of China and to recognize the representatives of its Government as the only legitimate representatives of China to the United Nations", and to expel forthwith the representatives of the Taiwan authorities from the place which they unlawfully occupy, Mao said that henceforth, the "dual representation" proposal put forth by the United States and a few other countries to keep Taiwan's seat in the UN became a piece of waste paper.

"Once and for all, UNGA Resolution 2758 resolved, politically, legally and procedurally, the issue of the representation of the whole of China, including Taiwan, at the UN. It also made it clear that there can only be one seat representing China at the UN. No issues exist about so-called 'two Chinas' or 'one China, one Taiwan'," Mao added.

Since the adoption of UNGA Resolution 2758, it has been observed by the UN and its specialized agencies and other international and regional organizations, Mao said, adding that on the basis of the one-China principle, 182 countries have established diplomatic relations with China, and the one-China principle has long been a universally recognized norm in international relations and a prevailing consensus among the international community.

"Any issue regarding the Taiwan region's participation in the activities of international organizations must be addressed under the framework of the one-China principle. Taiwan has no basis, reason or right to join the UN or other international organizations that require statehood," Mao said.

She reiterated that both sides of the Taiwan Strait belong to one and the same China. Taiwan is part of China's territory. Although the two sides have been politically against each other for a long time, China's state sovereignty and territorial integrity has never been split. This is the real status quo of the Taiwan question. The DPP authorities' hype-up of Taiwan's participation in the UN system is actually an attempt to create a false impression of "two Chinas" or "one China, one Taiwan" and challenge the UN-centered international order underpinned by international law.

Mao pointed out the DPP authorities have been promoting "incremental independence" and pushing for "de-sinicization", while some external forces have been fudging and hollowing out the one-China principle and conniving at and supporting separatist acts for "Taiwan independence". "It is them, not anyone else, who are undermining the status quo and peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait. They are the ones responsible for disrupting the cross-Strait status quo."

"Let me stress that the Taiwan question is purely China's internal affair and its resolution is a matter for the 1.4 billion Chinese on both sides of the Taiwan Strait," Mao said, adding that the DPP authorities will not succeed in seeking external support to embolden its separatist acts, and UNGA Resolution 2758 must not be challenged and the one-China principle is unshakable.

"The wheels of history will keep rolling on. The complete reunification of our country can, without doubt, be realized," Mao said.