Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, August 7) — China fired back following a statement made by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken against the East Asian superpower.
“Such remarks are in total defiance of the facts, attempting to confuse right with wrong and shift the blame on China, which again underscores the US’s bullying, highhandedness and hegemony,” Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Huang Xilian said in a statement Sunday, adding that given the misinformation and smear words, Beijing intends to set the record straight.
In a press conference during his visit to the Philippines on Aug. 6, Blinken called Beijing “irresponsible” after it decided to suspend its cooperation with Washington on the climate crisis amid tensions over Taiwan.
Tensions arose following the visit of US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in Taiwan, which China claims as its province.
“First, who is being irresponsible? US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi brazenly went ahead with her visit to China’s Taiwan region. This move seriously violates the One-China principle, maliciously infringes on China’s sovereignty, gravely undermines peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, and sends a seriously wrong signal to the separatist forces for ‘Taiwan independence,’” the Chinese official said.
“The Chinese government has every right to do whatever necessary and justified to resolutely uphold our sovereignty and territorial integrity,” he said, adding that Beijing only acted in legitimate self-defense after the US made the move.
Despite warnings against Pelosi’s visit, the US still turned a deaf ear, the ambassador said.
“Facts are clear that it is the US that has been acting irresponsibly all along which led to the escalation of tension. The US should take full responsibility,” he emphasized.
In his speech, Blinken said China should not use Pelosi’s Taiwan visit as “pretext” for its aggressive actions. He further accused Beijing of moving away from a decades-long status quo of peacefully resolving differences between Taiwan and mainland China.
“There is only one China, and both the mainland and Taiwan belong to this one China. This has been the status quo of Taiwan since ancient times,” Beijing’s envoy said, adding that it was the US that broke the status quo.
On the matter of destabilizing the region, China claimed “the US is not lending a helping hand. Instead, it is ganging up for confrontation and creating division.”
“The US has messed up many places around the world, it is now trying to mess up the Asia-Pacific. It has been proved time and again that what the US has done in the region as an outsider is by no means some kind of blessing, but a sinister move to disrupt regional peace and stability,” the ambassador said.
If the US and China do manage their differences, it would be a return to the right path, he said.
“But while we listen to his words, we must also watch the US actions. What the US must do first, is to fulfill its commitment on the Taiwan question to respecting China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, stop interfering in China’s internal affairs and stop conniving at and supporting ‘Taiwan independence’ separatist forces,” the Chinese official said.
