Beijing: As it gears up to host the APEC summit next year, China on Wednesday put Taiwan’s participation as a member state on notice, insisting that acceptance of the ‘One-China’ principle is a political requisite.
The Asia Pacific Economic Conference (APEC) last week concluded its summit in South Korea, where Chinese President Xi Jinping and his US counterpart Donald Trump had a fruitful meeting, reaching an informal agreement to end the tariff war between the two countries.
Xi later announced that next year’s summit of the grouping will be held in the Chinese city of Shenzhen.
APEC comprises 21 member economies, including Australia, Canada, Japan, South Korea, China, Hong Kong, New Zealand, the US, Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines, Thailand, China, Taipei, Chile, Mexico, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Russia, and Vietnam.
Taiwan, which China claims as part of its mainland, is a member of the APEC as Chinese Taipei.
Taiwanese Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung accused Beijing of backtracking on a prior commitment to support the island’s “equal” participation in APEC.
Asked to respond to Taiwan’s criticism, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told a media briefing here that “participating as a regional economy under the one-China principle and abiding by the terms and practices set forth in the relevant APEC MoU – this is the political prerequisite for Chinese Taipei’s participation in APEC.”
“China’s position on this issue is clear and firm,” she said, making it clear that Taiwan should accept the ‘One-China’ principle.
Lin told the media in Taipei that “during last year’s APEC meeting in Peru, when China was vying for next year’s hosting rights, it made a written commitment to support Taiwan’s equal participation, particularly regarding the safety of attendees.”
“China has now imposed numerous conditions on our participation in next year’s APEC summit in Shenzhen, which violates that prior commitment,” the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reported.
APEC is one of the island’s few windows for involvement in high-level multilateral platforms – taking part under the name “Chinese Taipei” – given its exclusion from most UN-affiliated organisations.
This designation, agreed upon in a 1992 APEC memorandum of understanding, requires the island to adhere to the ‘One-China’ principle and send ministerial-level delegates rather than its leader, the Post reported.
