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China tells UN it seeks end to Russia’s war in Ukraine as it warns on Taiwan
- ‘No country should abuse its power to bully other sovereign countries’, says Foreign Minister Wang Yi in speech laced with barbs aimed at US
- On Taiwan, ‘any move to obstruct China’s reunification is bound to be crushed by the wheels of history’, Beijing’s top envoy declares
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China seeks an end to Russia’s war in Ukraine and will hold firm in its Taiwan policy, Foreign Minister Wang Yi told the United Nations in a speech laced with barbs aimed at the United States.
“Turbulence and war can only open Pandora’s box, and he who instigates a proxy war can easily get himself burned,” said Wang during a 21-minute address in New York on Saturday.
“No country is above others, and no country should abuse its power to bully other sovereign countries,” he added at the UN’s first general assembly session since Russia invaded Ukraine in February, noting that Beijing would “take the most forceful steps to oppose external interference” involving Taiwan.
Although the foreign minister on Saturday addressed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine – a primary focus for global leaders this week – he devoted little more attention to it than he did to Afghanistan, Cuba or the Korean peninsula in a rapid-fire overview of global hotspots.
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Instead Wang spoke at length about Taiwan, warning the international community against any erosion in the self-ruled island’s status as an “inseparable” part of China. Beijing sees Taiwan as a renegade province to be brought under its control, by force if necessary.
“Only when China is completely reunified can there be enduring peace across the Taiwan Strait,” the career diplomat said. “Any move to obstruct China’s reunification is bound to be crushed by the wheels of history.”
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