Tensions rise after Taiwan election
China not happy with vote’s results
TAIPEI, Taiwan — A war of words erupted the day after Taiwan’s presidential and parliamentary elections, with Taiwan on Sunday accusing China of making “fallacious comments” and China criticizing the United States for congratulating the winner.
The verbal sparring highlighted the seemingly intractable divide over Taiwan’s fate, a major flashpoint in US-China relations that risks leading to an actual war in the future.
The victory of Lai Ching-te in Saturday’s election was a setback for China’s efforts to bring Taiwan under its control. His Democratic Progressive Party advocates maintaining the status quo, in which Taiwan governs itself but refrains from declaring formal independence — a move that could trigger a Chinese military response. China, meanwhile, calls for what it terms a “peaceful reunification,” but that seems increasingly unrealistic as most Taiwanese have come to oppose becoming part of China.
Taiwan said as much, taking issue with China over its oftenrepeated line that Taiwan is a domestic Chinese issue. China regards the island of 23 million people as a renegade province and says it shouldn’t have its own president or official relations with foreign governments.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry said in a statement on the election that “the Taiwan question is China’s internal affair" and "the basic fact that .... Taiwan is part of China will not change.”
Taiwan said that statement “is completely inconsistent with international understanding and the current cross-strait situation. It goes against the expectation of global democratic communities and goes against the will of the people of Taiwan to uphold democratic values. Such cliches are not worth refuting.”
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken congratulated Lai on his victory, saying Washington looks forward to working with all of Taiwan’s leaders “to advance our shared interests and values.” He congratulated the people of Taiwan for demonstrating the strength of their democracy, a nod to the Biden administration’s efforts to find common ground with other democracies in the face of China’s rise.
China’s Foreign Ministry said the US statement “sends a gravely wrong signal to the ‘Taiwan independence’ separatist forces” and goes against a US commitment to maintaining only unofficial ties with Taiwan.
Lai’s victory means the Democratic Progressive Party will continue to hold the presidency for a third four-year term, following eight years under President Tsai Ing-wen. But Lai won a three-way race for president with 40 percent of the vote, less than the clear majority Tsai won in 2020. He will take office in May.
The Democratic Progressive Party lost its majority in the legislature, finishing with one seat fewer than the Kuomintang, or Nationalist Party. Neither holds a majority, giving the Taiwan People’s Party — a relatively new force that won eight of the 113 seats — a possible swing vote on legislation.
A statement from the Taiwan Affairs Office in China said that the results showed that the Democratic Progressive Party does not represent mainstream public opinion on the island.
Taiwan’s Foreign Ministry, in its response, called on China “to respect the election results, face reality, and give up its oppression against Taiwan.”