Taipei [Taiwan], October 2 : Taiwan has accused China of misinterpreting a United Nations resolution to justify future military aggression and said that only Taiwan's democratically elected government can speak for the island's 23 million people.
Taiwan has called to denounce the resolution, as it did not mention Taiwan, nor did China represent Taiwan at the UN.
In a post on X, Taiwan's Foreign Ministry said Resolution 2758 of the UN General Assembly has been "distorted" by Beijing. "The resolution does not mention Taiwan nor authorise the PRC to represent us in the UN. Taiwan is not part of the PRC, and only our democratically elected Government speaks for its 23 million citizens," the ministry wrote.
The comments came after China released a paper reiterating its "one-China" principle, arguing that Resolution 2758 "fully embodies" it. The 1971 resolution recognised the People's Republic of China as the only legitimate representative of China at the UN, but Taiwan says it contains no reference to the island.
Calling Beijing's position "a deliberate attempt to mislead," Taipei warned it was aimed at altering the status quo across the Taiwan Strait and "creating a legal basis for future military aggression."
China's Tuesday position paper on the resolution said, "The resolution makes it clear that there is but one China in the world and the Government of the People's Republic of China is the only legitimate representative of the whole of China, including the Taiwan region. There is no such thing as 'two Chinas' or 'one China, one Taiwan'."
Beijing "naturally and fully enjoys and exercises China's sovereignty, including sovereignty over the Taiwan region; and also naturally represents the whole China in international relations, including enjoying and exercising all the rights of China in the UN," it said.
Beijing maintains that Taiwan is a breakaway province and that the resolution affirms its sovereignty over the island. Taiwan, however, has rejected the claim since 1949, insisting that its status must be determined by its people.