China firmly declares to US that it will ‘never compromise’ on Taiwan

• China declares its commitment to “never compromise” on Taiwan’s issue.
• The announcement comes just days before pivotal elections in Taiwan.
• The US must adhere to the one-China principle, and honor relevant commitments.

In its first military talks with the US since 2021, China has declared that it will “never compromise” on the issue of Taiwan. China has urged the US to “seriously take” its concerns and “stop arming Taiwan.” This announcement comes just days before pivotal elections in Taiwan that could either strengthen or weaken the island’s ties with Beijing. While China asserts Taiwan as part of its own territory, the island considers itself distinct from the Chinese mainland.

“China expressed its willingness to develop healthy and stable military-to-military relations with the United States based on equality and respect,” said the defense ministry.

It emphasized that the US must take China’s concerns “seriously,” asserting that Beijing would “not make any concession or compromise on the Taiwan question.” China demanded that the US adhere to the one-China principle, honor relevant commitments, cease arming Taiwan, and refrain from supporting Taiwan’s independence.

Taiwan serves as a crucial point of contention in the power struggle between China and the US for dominance in Asia. In 2022, China abstained from resuming talks as a protest after then-US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan in August 2022.

The resumption of talks earlier this week follows an agreement reached by Chinese President Xi Jinping and his US counterpart, Joe Biden, during a meeting in November. The two-day talks concluded in Washington on Tuesday.

On a separate note, Taiwan clarified that it does not view the launch of a Chinese satellite over the island’s southern airspace on Tuesday as an act of election interference. A satellite launch prompted an islandwide air raid alert on Tuesday afternoon, with mobile phone users receiving a safety warning. Taiwan’s defense ministry later apologized for inaccurately referencing a missile in the alert sent to mobile phones.

“After the national security team has analyzed the overall relevant information and taken into account the evaluation of the information of various international allies, political attempts can be ruled out,” said Lin Yu-chan, a spokesman of Taiwan’s presidential office.

Chinese state media said the satellite, named the Einstein Probe, is used to “observe mysterious transient phenomena”.

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