Taiwan's MAC slams Chinese White Paper, claims Beijing paints 'misleading picture'

In a statement issued on August 10, Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) stated that the island nation and China are not subordinate to each other, and that the Taiwanese people strongly oppose Beijing's "one country, two systems" approach. According to the MAC, the Republic of China (Taiwan) is a sovereign country that has never been ruled by the Chinese Communist Party.

Many democratic countries have solemnly condemned and objected to China's claim of jurisdiction over Taiwan based on an incorrect interpretation of a United Nations General Assembly resolution, the official statement added. The MAC issued its statement in response to Beijing's Taiwan white paper, which claimed that Taiwan is a part of China and declared its determination to unify with the island nation, including through the use of force as a last resort.

China releases white Paper on August 10

Following the conclusion of the largest military exercise ever conducted near Taiwan, Chinese authorities published a "white paper" titled "The Taiwan Question and China's Reunification in the New Era" in response to US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's unannounced visit to Taipei. The white paper was jointly published on August 10 by Beijing's State Council's Taiwan Affairs Office and the Information Office.

It reaffirms Beijing's claims to the island and criticises "Taiwan independence" efforts. "Resolving the Taiwan question and realising China's complete reunification is a shared aspiration," according to the white paper. Tensions in the Taiwan Strait rose after US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan and declared that the US will stand by the island nation despite Chinese authorities' criticism.

White paper reiterates Beijing's wishful thinking

Further, the MAC emphasised that the Chinese white paper reiterated Beijing's wishful thinking, which runs completely counter to international law and the cross-strait status quo, by painting a misleading picture of its "national unification" and shifting responsibility for its aggressive action against Taiwan. According to the council, such 'clumsy political manoeuvring' reflects China's 'ossified thinking' and highlights the nation's ambition to disrupt peace across the Taiwan Strait and in the region through the use of force.

Such futile efforts, it added, only increase public resentment. According to the MAC, democratic Taiwan is a responsible regional stakeholder, whereas China is the primary source of regional risk and crisis. Beijing should stop threatening Taiwan with military force and spreading false information, the statement further remarked.