China Criticizes Dalai Lama for Taiwan VisitChina Tuesday criticized the Dalai Lama for contemplating another visit to Taiwan."The political purpose of a visit of the Dalai Lama to Taiwan is quite obvious," said Foreign Ministry spokesman Sun Yuxi. "We are opposed to any kind of political activity by any person to split the motherland and undermine national unity," he said. Sun stressed that both Taiwan and Tibet are inalienable parts of China. He added that any attempt to undermine the Chinese people's desire for national unity and reunification is doomed to failure. The Dalai Lama is reportedly considering a visit to Taiwan. He previously visited the island in March 1997. Sun also commented on China's ties with Israel, where President Jiang Zemin is to visit later this month. The two countries have ties in various fields that will not be affected by external factors, said Sun, adding that military exchanges are only a part of normal state-to-state relations. Jiang's upcoming visit, which will take him to six nations, is expected to focus on bilateral ties. Sun said regional issues such as the Middle East peace process will also be discussed. China hopes that the parties, on the basis of the relevant UN resolutions and the principle of "land for peace," will adopt a flexible and pragmatic approach to push forward peace talks, Sun said. Turning to the issue of reforming the UN Security Council, Sun said the voices of a large number of developing countries should be heard. China is willing to conduct in-depth discussions with other UN members on the issue, Sun said. Sun also expressed concern over the hospitalization of Japanese Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi. Sun said China hopes that the momentum gained recently in China-Japan relations will not be affected. |
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