Key Points
- China's ambassador to Australia Xiao Qian has told the Australian government to treat the issue of Taiwan with “caution”.
- He said China would be prepared to use “all means necessary” for what he described as “unification” of the island with mainland China.
China's ambassador to Australia Xiao Qian has told the Australian government to treat the issue of Taiwan with “caution” saying there is “no room for compromise” over Beijing’s territorial claim over the self-governed island.
Mr Xiao addressed the National Press Club on Wednesday as tensions intensify across the Taiwan Strait since US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taipei.
Mr Xiao struck a conciliatory tone about the prospect of relations improving with the new Australian government, but on the question of Taiwan remained resolute.
He said China would be prepared to use “all necessary means” for what he described as “unification” of the island with mainland China.
“Caution is just to remind,” he said.
“I like to remind [that] big and great as Australia is, it is important for the government in this country to stick to the commitment of ‘One China’ policy.
“It should be practised with absolute sincerity, but without discount.”
China considers Taiwan as part of its territory, despite the ruling Chinese Communist Party never controlling the self-governed island.
It has threatened to take Taiwan under its control by military force if necessary.
Tensions simmer over Nancy Pelosi's visit
The Chinese military conducted military and air force drills near Taiwan in retaliation to Ms Pelosi’s visit to Taipei, blaming the United States for what it describes as a provocative action undermining the status quo.
The democratically elected government of Taiwan has responded with its own military exercises.
Taiwanese Foreign Minister Joseph Wu has said the self-governed island will not be intimidated describing the action as an “an attempt to weaken public morale in Taiwan”.
Australia doesn't formally recognise Taiwan as a sovereign state, adhering to its own “One China policy”, but has continued to maintain ties with Taipei on an unofficial basis.
Foreign Minister Penny Wong recently said Australia wanted to see “calm and restraint” prevail, calling on all sides to maintain the status quo.
A spokesperson for the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Australia said it had called upon China to "act with reason and restraint."
"Taiwan would neither escalate the conflict nor instigate disputes, but resolutely defend our nation’s sovereignty," they said.
You can use your imagination, but the one point for [the] Chinese people [is they] are absolutely determined to protect our sovereignty, territorial integrity.
‘Use of force would be the last resort’
As tensions persist, the Chinese government released a Taiwanese White Paper on Wednesday reiterating its position Beijing considers Taiwan its own territory.
The paper says the Hong Kong model of “one country, two systems” should be implemented in Taiwan and that “use of force would be the last resort taken under compelling circumstances”.
The white paper also accuses Taiwan’s ruling Democratic Progressive Party, led by President Tsai Ing-wen, of restricting progress towards what it called “peaceful reunification”.
“These are the obstacles that must be removed in advancing the process of peaceful reunification.”
Mr Xiao was asked about the position outlined in the white paper and pressed to explain what conditions the Chinese government would use to constitute using force to take Taiwan.
“What does it mean ‘all necessary means?’” he said.
“You can use your imagination, but the one point for [the] Chinese people [is they] are absolutely determined to protect our sovereignty, territorial integrity.”
China announced six exclusion zones around Taiwan for military drills after the visit of US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Source: SBS News
Territorial claim over Taiwan
Mr Xiao also used the example of Australia’s territorial claim over Tasmania to explain his point about China’s territorial claim over Taiwan.
“It’s not a good example, but Tasmania was, is, will be part of Australia. This involves territorial integrity.”
Opposition Leader Peter Dutton speaking before Mr Xiao's address said China had made its intentions clear in Taiwan and this needed to be called out.
"The only way that we can maintain peace in our region, is if we call out bullying behavior and bad actors," he told reporters.
"The propaganda that you're seeing coming out is similar to what you'd see come out of North Korea or out of Russia, and it needs to be called out."
The address from Mr Xiao comes after the new ambassador had earlier signalled a desire from the Chinese government to improve fractured relations with the Australian government.
He has spoken about the prospect of a reset in relations with the new Albanese government.
Since the 21 May federal election, high-level ministerial meetings between China and Australia have recommenced including with Defence Minister Richard Marles and Senator Wong.
But Australia has continued to raise concerns over trade sanctions imposed by Beijing, the detention of Australian citizens and Beijing’s military expansion.
Mr Xiao described the communication as a “good start” but added that there was “more to be done” to create a “favourable atmosphere” for the relationship.
Asked about a possible meeting between Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Chinese President Xi Jinping, he suggested progress still needed to be made for this to occur.
“The meeting at the top level is very important, not in the sense of symbolism, but also in essence,” he said.
Mr Albanese has indicated he would be willing to meet with his Chinese counterpart.
But the prime minister has also constantly spoken about the need for countries to act in adherence to international law, in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
In the past couple of years, unfortunately, the relationship between China and Australia was caught in a difficult situation due to reasons known to all.
China has not openly denounced Russia’s military action in the country, instead calling for a political solution to be achieved between the countries.
Mr Xiao used the address to argue his country believed in adhering to international law.
“No matter how China develops itself now or in the future, China will never seek hegemony or sphere of influence,” he said.
The ambassador also claimed that his country had no intention to establish a military base in Solomon Islands, following his country’s signing of a security deal with Honiara.
Asked about the detention of Australian journalist Cheng Lei in China, the ambassador defended China's secrecy over the trial, saying the case was a matter of "national security" that would be decided according to Chinese law.
Mr Xiao said he did want to see relations continue to improve with Australia explaining that he had come here to seek “friends” not “rivals”.
"When we cooperate, we both win. When we don't, we both lose," he said.
Despite the recent fracture in the relationship, China remains Australia’s largest trading partner.
