China won’t renounce use of force over Taiwan; Xi visits frontline island

BEIJING/TAIPEI: China will never commit to renouncing the use of force over Taiwan, the government in Beijing said on Wednesday after another bout of war games and a visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping to the scene of a famous defeat for Taiwanese forces.

“We are willing to strive for the prospect of peaceful reunification with the utmost sincerity and endeavour,” Chen Binhua, spokesperson for China’s Taiwan Affairs Office, told a regular press briefing in Beijing.

“But we will never commit ourselves to renouncing the use of force,” he said.

That is, however, aimed at the interference of “external forces” and the very small number of Taiwan separatists, not the vast majority of Taiwan’s people, Chen said. Taiwan has close though unofficial relations with the United States, a major arms supplier, and its allies. “No matter how many troops Taiwan has and how many weapons it acquires, and no matter whether external forces intervene or not, if it (Taiwan) dares to take risks.