"Taiwan independence" will not mean peace but a war between the two sides of the straits, Chinese Ambassador to the United States Li Zhaoxing said in Washington Saturday.

Li made the remark at a seminar to commemorate the fifth anniversary of the publication of Chinese President Jiang Zemin's eight-point speech on the reunification of the motherland.

The Communist Party of China and the Chinese government will never make compromise on safeguarding the national sovereignty and territorial integrity, the ambassador said.

Any attempt to separate China is doomed to failure, he said, warning the separatist force in Taiwan must not "play with fire."

The core of the issue is reunification of the motherland, he said, "two countries," "one China and one Taiwan" or "Taiwan independence" will not be tolerated.

Resolving the Taiwan issue accords with the will of all the Chinese people and it should not be delayed indefinitely, Li Zhaoxing said.

The Chinese people have never been as urgent and historically obliged as today to resolve the Taiwan issue and realize the complete reunification of the motherland, he added.

The ambassador reiterated the basic principle of "peaceful reunification" and "one country, two systems," but he said China will not promise to renounce the use of force.

Li Zhaoxing said Taiwan is the core issue in Sino-US relations and it must be handled properly for a sound bilateral relationship between the two countries.

The Taiwan Security Enhancement Act of the US Congress is a severe violation of the three communiques governing Sino-US relations and an infringement on China's sovereignty, he said.

The Ambassador urged US Congressmen to immediately stop interference in the internal affairs of China.