U.S. harbors ill intentions by inviting Taiwan to "democracy summit"

BEIJING, Dec. 9 (Xinhua) -- The United States harbored ill intentions by inviting Taiwan to the so-called "democracy summit," Chinese scholars observed, calling it a political trick.

In doing so, Washington is openly bolstering "Taiwan independence" separatist forces, interfering in China's internal affairs, and challenging the one-China principle, they said.

The true purpose of the U.S. move is to "contain China," not to "help Taiwan," they noted.

Li Haidong, director of the American Studies Center, China Foreign Affairs University, said the U.S. inviting Taiwan is "a farce with no legitimacy, just destruction."

Taiwan is a part of China. By inviting Taiwan to the so-called "democracy summit," the United States sent a wrong signal to "Taiwan independence" separatist forces, contradicting not only its Taiwan-related statements but also the trend of the times and the international consensus.

The United States' repeated political manipulation of the Taiwan question is not motivated by concern for Taiwan's interests, but is another attempt to impede China's development, Li said.

"The United States' ill intention to contain China is very clear, and in Washington's eyes, Taiwan is just a chess piece at its disposal," he said.

According to Zhang Hua, an expert with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, the U.S. move is motivated by political and strategic considerations.

Washington regards Taiwan as a crucial link in its so-called "Indo-Pacific strategy," Zhang said, adding that playing the so-called Taiwan card is just one strategy in the United States' bag of anti-China tricks.

Zhu Songling, a Taiwan studies professor with Beijing Union University, said the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authority has steadily eroded democracy since it came to power on the island. It has restricted the freedom of the press and cracked down on opponents.

"This makes the DPP's participation in the so-called summit ironic," Zhu said.

The DPP authority is pleased about attending the event, he said, not because it wants to improve democracy in Taiwan but because of its persistent stance of seeking "Taiwan independence."

Zhu said the DPP authority intends to enter the closed circles formed by the United States and is willing to act as a pawn of Washington in return for support in seeking "Taiwan independence."