New Delhi: Taiwan has slammed China for its criticism over the exchange of messages between the island nation and India. Taiwan Deputy Foreign Minister Tien Chung-kwang said in a statement that neither their president nor Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be intimidated by China's criticism.
Taiwan's sharp retort came after the Chinese foreign ministry raised objections to the exchange of messages between PM Modi and Taiwan President Lai Ching Te, when the latter congratulated the former on his victory in the 2024 general elections in India.
“I am sure Modi ji and our President would not be intimidated by that [China’s] reaction…They are leaders congratulating each other and I think that there is nothing wrong with that,” said Tien Chung-kwang, deputy foreign minister of Taiwan at Taipei.
Soon after the exchange of messages, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said, "First of all, there is no such thing as ‘president’ of the Taiwan region... China opposes all forms of official interactions between the Taiwan authorities and countries having diplomatic relations with China. There is but one China in the world. Taiwan is an inalienable part of the territory of the People’s Republic of China”.
Criticizing India's interaction with Taiwan, she said, “India has made serious political commitments on this and is supposed to recognize, be alarmed about and resist the Taiwan authorities’ political calculations. China has protested to India about this".
After the election of Lai to the Taiwanese presidency earlier this year, tensions across the Taiwan Straits have increased. Last month, days after Lai’s inauguration, Beijing ordered mega military drills around the island territory to punish “separatist forces seeking independence”.
However, ties between Taipei and New Delhi continue to grow, with the two signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in February on labor cooperation. The MoU opens up the island territory to Indian workers.
