FM Spokesman on Lee Teng-Hui's Separatist Remarks ����Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhu Bangzao Monday warned that Lee Teng-hui and the Taiwan authorities should size up the situation soberly, rein in at the brink of the precipice and immediately cease all separatist activities. ����In an interview with the press in Beijing, Zhu warned that Lee and the Taiwan authorities not to underestimate the firm resolve of the Chinese government to safeguard state sovereignty, dignity and territorial integrity or the courage and strength of the Chinese people to fight against separation and Taiwan's independence. ����Zhu said Lee recently declared in an interview with Deutsche Welle that the Taiwan authorities had defined the cross-Straits relations as "state-to-state, or at least special state-to-state relations". ����It has been echoed by certain persons holding responsible positions in the relevant departments of the Taiwan authorities, who have stated that cross-Straits ties have developed from ties between "two equal political entities" to those between "two states" and that the cross-Straits talks are "talks between two states", he noted. ����This flagrant declaration by Lee Teng-hui marks an extremely dangerous step he has taken on the separatist road and is an out-and-out negation of and serious provocation against the universally-accepted one-China principle, the spokesman said. ����It has further exposed his political nature of deliberately dividing the Chinese territory and sovereignty in an attempt to separate Taiwan from China, Zhu noted, adding that this has once again proved that he has cheated Taiwan compatriots and fooled the world opinion by saying that he "will not and has no need to pursue a policy for 'Taiwan's independence'" and that "he has not given up the pursuit of future reunification of the country", statements that he had made repeatedly in the past. ����Since he came into office, Lee Teng-hui has, in disregard of opposition from the majority of the people on the island, spared no efforts to pursue "pragmatic diplomacy" and gone all out for separatist activities through such despicable means as bribery, the spokesman said. ����Lee has attempted to create "two Chinas" or "one China, one Taiwan" in the world and has gone so far as to define the cross-Straits relations as "state-to-state relations" in defiance of the will of the people, Zhu pointed out. ����Lee has gone too far on the dangerous road of playing with fire, the spokesman said, adding that this will undoubtedly seriously obstruct the improvement of ties between the two sides across the Taiwan Straits, affect the stability of the situation in the Taiwan Straits and jeopardize the peaceful reunification of China. ����There is only one China in the world and Taiwan is part of the Chinese territory. China's territory and sovereignty are indivisible, Zhu said. ����The international community, including the United Nations and the majority of countries in the world, recognizes that Taiwan belongs to China, that the government of the People's Republic of China is the sole legal government representing the whole of China, and that Taiwan is part of China, the spokesman said. ����Though the two sides across the Straits are yet to be reunified, the status of Taiwan as part of the Chinese territory has not changed and brooks no change, he said. ����The fact that China has sovereignty over Taiwan has not changed and will remain unchanged. The Taiwan issue will not possibly be procrastinated indefinitely and China's reunification is bound to be realized, Zhu said. ����No matter how many separatist remarks Lee Teng-hui makes, he cannot reverse the historical trend, the spokesman added. ����"We hereby warn Lee Teng-hui and the Taiwan authorities not to underestimate the firm resolve of the Chinese government to safeguard state sovereignty, dignity and territorial integrity or the courage and strength of the Chinese people to fight against separation and Taiwan's independence," Zhu stressed. ����The reunification of China represents the general trend and the popular will. Lee Teng-hui and the Taiwan authorities should size up the situation soberly, rein in at the brink of the precipice and immediately cease all separatist activities, Zhu said. HomeNews 1999-07-13 Page1 Full Story in Chinese