Taiwan responds to Xi’s speech

The island won’t back down on its sovereignty, the office of the Taiwanese president says

The office of Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen has reacted to Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s party congress speech by stressing that the island won’t back down on its sovereignty or compromise on its democracy.

The majority of Taiwan’s 23.5-million population reject China’s “one country, two systems” approach, Tsai’s office said in a statement on Sunday. Beijing uses a similar policy to regulate its relations with China’s special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macao.

Taiwan’s position about sticking to its sovereignty and democratic rule is “very firm,” the president’s office stressed.

A military confrontation between Taiwan and China is “definitely not an option for both sides,” Tsai’s office pointed out, adding that Taipei was willing to work with Beijing to find a “mutually acceptable way to maintain peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.”

Earlier in the day, Xi delivered a long speech at the opening session of the 20th National Congress of China’s Communist Party in which he vowed that Beijing would “continue to strive for peaceful reunification with Taiwan,” but added that it “will never promise to renounce the use of force, and we reserve the option of taking all measures necessary.”

However, he clarified that the warning wasn’t directed at the people on the island, but rather at the “outside forces” and the “few separatists seeking Taiwan independence.”

READ MORE: China’s Xi makes Taiwan pledge

Taiwan has been self-governed since 1949, but never officially declared independence from China. Beijing considers the island a part of its territory.

Tensions between Taipei and Beijing have been running high since the visit of US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan this August. China said that the move was an infringement on its sovereignty and issued a furious response, launching massive drills in the Taiwan Strait and slapping trade restrictions on the island.