Key Takeaways
- Taiwan slams China for protesting exchange of messages between President Lai and PM Modi.
- The Taiwan-India partnership is strengthening, with areas for cooperation including trade and technology.
- China’s opposition to official interactions between the Taiwanese authorities and countries diplomatically aligned with China is a key concern.
New Delhi: Taiwan on Friday slammed China for protesting an exchange of tweets between Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te and Prime Minister Narendra Modi following the latter’s election victory.
The Taiwanese Foreign Ministry said Beijing’s anger over a cordial exchange on X between the leaders of two democracies is unjustified, and that Taiwan is dedicated to building partnerships with India.
“#China’s outrage at a cordial exchange between the leaders of 2 democracies is utterly unjustified. Threats & intimidation never foster friendships. #Taiwan remains dedicated to building partnerships with #India underpinned by mutual benefit & shared values,” it posted.
The response came after China’s foreign ministry said that “there is no such thing as ‘president’ of the Taiwan region” and that Beijing opposes all official interactions between the “Taiwanese authorities” and countries diplomatically aligned with China.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson also said that India has made “serious political commitments” to China regarding the “one China principle” on Taiwan and is obligated to “recognize, be alarmed about and resist the Taiwan authorities’ political calculations.”
On Wednesday evening, President Lai sent a congratulatory message on X to PM Modi on his re-election as head of the country.
Lai said on X that his administration looks forward to “enhancing the fast-growing Taiwan-India partnership.” He highlighted areas for cooperation including trade and technology and to “contribute to peace and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific.”
Modi retweeted Lai’s post on X and thanked him for his “warm message”. He expressed anticipation of closer ties as “we work towards mutually beneficial economic and technological partnership.”
Earlier, as part of its moves to bully Taiwan, China had launched a major military drill in waters surrounding Taiwan on May 23 as “a strong punishment” against “Taiwan independence forces” three days after the inauguration of Taiwan’s new President, Lai Ching-te.
On June 6, Taiwanese Minister of National Defense Wellington Koo said if Chinese military forces enter Taiwan’s territory, then Taiwan’s armed forces will exercise the right of self-defence.
Lai Ching-te was sworn in as Taiwan’s new president on May 20, 2024, succeeding President Tsai Ing-wen. Lai Ching-te has served as the Vice President of the Republic of China (Taiwan) since 2020 and has been a key figure in Taiwan’s government.
