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進入《TAIPEI TIMES》 Report calls on UK not to accept ‘one China’
The Union Flag flies outside the British Houses of Parliament in London on Feb. 9. Photo: Reuters
‘CHALLENGE’: A parliamentary commission said that London should only ‘acknowledge’ Beijing’s ‘one China’ principle, while upholding the cross-strait ‘status quo’
By Lu Yi-hsuan and William Hetherington / Staff reporter, with staff writer
A British parliamentary body yesterday in a policy recommendation report called on the UK to say that it only “acknowledges,” but does not “accept” Beijing’s “one China” principle.
The report was issued by the British House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee.
The UK’s Integrated Review released in March last year was described by then-British prime minister Boris Johnson as “the largest review of its kind since the Cold War.”
Yesterday’s report builds on last year’s review, taking into account major geopolitical events that have occurred since. The report is a set of recommendations for the next review, which is to be published in February.
The report said China presents a growing challenge to the international order and its posture is becoming increasingly aggressive, particularly against island countries and developing nations.
It also discussed China’s ambitions toward annexing Taiwan, which it said exacerbates the risk of a conflict in the Taiwan Strait.
The review in March said that the UK should bolster its relations with countries in the Indo-Pacific region, but did not specifically name Taiwan as a target of such endeavors.
Yesterday’s report said that the UK should express that it only “acknowledges,” but does not “accept,” Beijing’s “one China” principle, and that China should “not use force to change the status quo” in the Taiwan Strait.
In Taipei, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a statement said that it sincerely welcomes and appreciates concrete actions taken by British officials to demonstrate their support for Taiwan.
It said that committee members who visited Taipei late last month discussed the Taiwan-UK relationship with their Taiwanese counterparts in preparation for writing the report.
“The UK has always supported Taiwan’s meaningful participation in international organizations,” the ministry said. “It has always shown concern about the maintenance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, and called for the peaceful resolution of cross-strait differences,” the statement said.
As a responsible member of the Indo-Pacific region, Taiwan would continue to work with like-minded countries and partners such as the UK, to boost the resilience of global democracy, and jointly maintain peace, stability, prosperity and sustainable development in the region, it said.
新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES
