Taiwan question at core of China-US ties, FM spokesman says

Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian said on Thursday that the Taiwan question is "at the very core of China's core interests" and "the very foundation of the political foundation of China-US relations", when asked to comment on speculation that Taiwan will be China's top concern at a reportedly upcoming meeting between the Chinese and US leaders.

Lin said that abiding by the one-China principle, the three China-US joint communiques, and honoring the commitments made by successive US administrations on the Taiwan question, are international obligations that the United States must fulfill.

They are also a necessary prerequisite for the stable, sound, and sustainable development of China-US relations, he added.

"China's resolve to safeguard national reunification and territorial integrity is firm and unwavering," Lin said at a regular news briefing.

He stressed that "Taiwan independence" separatism is as incompatible with peace across the Taiwan Strait as fire is with water, adding that to maintain cross-Strait peace and stability, one must unequivocally oppose "Taiwan independence" separatism.