China calls Taiwan's offer of talks as 'cheap trick'
China has dismissed a call for talks from Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen, saying no dialogue can change the reality of Beijing’s sovereignty over the self-ruled island.
Tsai said on Friday that her government is ready to have “meaningful” talks with Beijing as equals as long as they are willing to put aside confrontation.
“We are willing to jointly promote meaningful dialogue,” Tsai said, so long as Beijing is willing to “defuse antagonism and improve cross-strait relations, in line with the principles of reciprocity and dignity.”
China’s Taiwan Affairs Office rebuffed the request on Saturday, describing her remarks as a “cheap trick.”
The office said that since 2016, Taiwan’s ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) “has continued to provoke by seeking independence, confronting the mainland at every turn, deliberately creating confrontation across the Taiwan Strait.”
“They again talked about so-called ‘dialogue,’ but where can that come from?” it said. “We urge the DPP authorities to stop it with these cheap tricks that dupe people.”
Beijing has sovereignty over self-ruled Taiwan, and under the “One China” policy, almost all world countries recognize that sovereignty.
The island’s defiant president, however, has been calling for independence. Tsai was re-elected last year on a pledge to stand up to China.
During the Friday address, she criticized the patrols of Chinese military ships in the Taiwan Strait, saying the actins “threatened the peace and stability of the Indo-Pacific region.”
China says its activities in the sensitive waterway come in response to “collusion” between the US and the government in Taipei.
The US naval forces released a new maritime strategy last month insisting that Washington must counter China's “skyrocketing military growth and aggressive behavior” in the Pacific or risk giving up its place as the world's strongest naval force.
The US, which also recognizes Chinese sovereignty over the island, continues to sell weapons to the island, in an effort to press Taipei to build up its military so it can face what it refers to as threats from China.
Under President Donald Trump’s administration, Washington has constantly supported Taiwan’s secessionist president.
The Tsai government signed a 62-billion-dollar deal earlier this year to purchase F-16 fighter jets from the US.
Beijing has repeatedly warned US against expanding ties with Taiwan, calling the weapons sales t as a violation of China’s sovereignty.
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