China calls the trip a “violation” of the ‘one China’ principle

MADRID, 2 Dec (EUROPA PRESS) –

Alicia Kearns, who led the British delegation visiting Taiwan, assured this Friday that the region is “not alone” and has the right, “like any other democracy”, to commit to dialogue.

After a meeting with Taiwan’s president, Tsai Ing Wen, amid rising tensions with China, Kearns stressed that Taiwan has gone from being a “novice” in terms of democracy to “one of the strongest democracies in the world”. .

So, in the British parliamentary commissioner’s first visit to the island since 2006, he has warned that the world is “increasingly moving towards authoritarianism”, so it is important that “democracies are committed to dialogue at the parliamentary level”.

“We are enjoying results on a more global level and we recognize and value the values ​​of our allies in the Indo-Pacific,” Kearns said during his meeting with Tsai, whom he asked to work with, according to information from the newspaper. ‘United Daily News’.

In this sense, he stressed that Taiwan “has friends” and is “not alone”, while reminding that Britain’s role is to “support Taiwan to avoid conflict”, an obvious reference to China’s possible military intervention in the zone. .

Tsai, for her part, welcomed the visit, which comes nearly four months after the speaker of the United States House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, came to the island on a searing visit. “Democracies must remain united even in the face of expanding authoritarianism,” he told a news conference.

The Chinese Embassy in Britain was quick to condemn the British delegation’s visit, which it described as a “flagrant violation of the ‘one China’ principle”.

In a statement, a spokesman for the diplomatic embassy insisted on China’s “firm position” and had indicated that the decision to go to Taiwan amounted to “serious interference in the country’s internal affairs and sends the wrong message to separatist forces seeking independence from Taiwan”.

“Taiwan is an inalienable part of China’s territory and the Taiwan issue is purely an internal matter. The principle of ‘one China’ is an internationally recognized norm (…) and also the political basis for the establishment and development of diplomatic relations between China and the UK ,” he stressed.

To that end, he said, the Chinese government “requests the UK to keep its commitments and stop any actions that violate this principle.” “British decisions that undermine China’s interests will have consequences,” he warned.