China accuses US of 'mistake' after Biden invites Taiwan to democracy summit
Source: The Guardian and agencies
China accuses US of ‘mistake’ after Biden invites Taiwan to democracy summit
Beijing urges Washington to stick to the ‘one China’ principle amid rising tensions over Taiwan
Helen Davidson in Taipei, and agencies
@heldavidson
Wed 24 Nov 2021 05.58 GMT
China’s government has accused Joe Biden of “a mistake” in inviting Taiwan to participate in a democracy summit alongside 109 other democratic governments.
Taiwan was included in a list of participants for next month’s Summit for Democracy, published by the state department on Tuesday. Taiwan is a democracy and self-governing, but Beijing claims it is a province of China and has accused its government of separatism.
The inaugural gathering is considered a test of Biden’s pledge that he would return the US to a position asserting global leadership to challenge authoritarian forces led by China and Russia. Neither is included in the virtual summit, scheduled for 9 and 10 December.
On Wednesday, Zhu Fenglian, spokeswoman for China’s Taiwan Affairs Office, said the inclusion of Taiwan was a “mistake” and Beijing opposed “any official interaction between the US and China’s Taiwan region”.
“This stance is clear and consistent. We urge the US to stick to the ‘one China’ principle and the three joint communiques,” she said.
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Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/nov/24/china-accuses-us-of-mistake-after-biden-invites-taiwan-to-democracy-summit
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