China warns Obama, McCain to toe line on Taiwan Beijing (AFP) Oct 9, 2008 China warned the two American presidential candidates Thursday against supporting the independence of Taiwan, saying such moves will strain China-US relations. The warning came after China learnt Barack Obama and John McCain supported a proposed 6.5 billion dollar arms package to Taiwan. "The Taiwan issue is the core issue in China-US relations," foreign ministry spokesman Qin Gang told journalists. "Thirty years of bilateral ties have shown that when the Taiwan issue is properly handled, the basis of the relationship is further developed. If not, the ties face twist and turns." "We hope the two candidates can realise this, and respect and uphold the one-China policy... and oppose Taiwan independence." China cancelled or postponed several military exchanges with the US after the Pentagon on Friday last week announced the proposed arms sale which includes advanced Patriot missile defence systems, Apache attack helicopters and submarine-launched anti-ship missiles. When the US severed official ties with Taiwan nearly 30 years ago, Congress passed the Taiwan Relations Act requiring the United States to help the island territory defend itself. Taiwan and the mainland have been governed separately since they split in 1949 at the end of a civil war but Beijing sees the island as part of its territory that is awaiting reunification, by force if necessary. Community Email This Article Comment On This Article Share This Article With Planet Earth
Related Links Taiwan News at SinoDaily.com
Taiwan, China eye talks in October: report Taipei (AFP) Sept 29, 2008 Taiwan and its rival China are expected to hold a second round of negotiations next month following historic talks in June, a newspaper reported Monday. |
|
The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2007 - SpaceDaily.AFP and UPI Wire Stories are copyright Agence France-Presse and United Press International. ESA Portal Reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by SpaceDaily on any Web page published or hosted by SpaceDaily. Privacy Statement |