Taiwan Premier Cho Jung-tai said on November 25 that a “return” to China is not an option for the island’s 23 million people, after Chinese President Xi Jinping pressed his country’s sovereignty claims in a call with U.S. President Donald Trump.
Xi told Trump on November 24 that Taiwan’s “return to China” at the end of World War Two was a key part of Beijing’s vision for the world order. Taiwan’s democratically elected government strongly rejects China’s stance. “We must once again emphasise that the Republic of China, Taiwan, is a fully sovereign and independent country,” Cho told reporters outside parliament, referring to the island’s formal name, according to a report by Reuters.
“For the 23 million people of our nation, ‘return’ is not an option – this is very clear,” he added.
In Taiwan’s system, the premier is in charge of day-to-day government operations while defence and foreign relations are generally the president’s purview. China has offered Taiwan a “one country, two systems” model, which enjoys no support from any mainstream Taiwanese political party and has been rejected by President Lai Ching-te.
China says Taiwan is its most important and sensitive diplomatic issue. Taipei has repeatedly denounced Beijing for trying to distort the legacy of World War Two, which ended 80 years ago, especially as Taiwan was handed to the Republic of China government at the end of the conflict. The People’s Republic of China did not come into existence until 1949, when Mao Zedong’s communist forces defeated the Republic of China forces, which then fled to Taiwan.