China will respond to the reported visit of a US Navy admiral to Taiwan and firmly opposes any military relations between Taipei and Washington, China's Foreign Ministry said on Monday.
A two-star Navy admiral overseeing US military intelligence in the Asia-Pacific region has made an unannounced visit to Taiwan, two sources told Reuters on Sunday. Neither Taiwan nor the United States has officially confirmed the trip.
The Trump administration has ramped up support for Taiwan, including with new arms sales, alarming China, which views the democratic island as one of its provinces with no right to state-to-state ties.
Speaking in Beijing, Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said China "resolutely opposes" any form of exchanges between US and Taiwanese officials or the two having military relations.
China urges the United States to fully recognise the extreme sensitivity of the Taiwan issue, Zhao told a news briefing.
"The Chinese side will, according to how the situation develops, make a legitimate and necessary response," he said, without elaborating.
China reacted with fury when US Health Secretary Alex Azar came to Taipei in August, followed by US Undersecretary of State Keith Krach in September, sending waplanes near to the island each time.Zhao also expressed his displeasure with the signing of a memorandum of understanding on economic exchanges following a meeting between Taiwanese and US officials in Washington.
China has already lodged "stern representations" with the United States, which should stop having these kinds of interactions with Taiwan, he added.
Comment: RT
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'We're not leaving': Trump security advisor says Washington committed to deterring Beijing amid S. China Sea dispute
President Donald Trump's national security advisor Robert O'Brien has reiterated the US' commitment to back the Philippines and Vietnam over Beijing's territorial claims in the potentially energy-rich South China Sea.
The two states have been engaged in a long-running row with Beijing over sovereignty in the contested South China Sea, of which China claims 90 percent.
O'Brien said the way to deter China is the "peace-through-strength message" and reinforced Washington's military commitment to the region.
"Our message is we're going to be here, we've got your back, and we're not leaving."
The national security advisor reaffirmed that the US stands firmly behind the Philippines in building a deterrent against Chinese expansionism, adding that the sub-sea resources claimed by the Philippines belonged to its people and future generations.
"They don't belong to some other country just because they may be bigger than the Philippines...that's just wrong," he said.
In 2016, the dispute over the territory and exploration rights went to the Hague, where a court ruled in favor of the Philippines against China. However, Beijing rejected the ruling, with President Xi Jinping saying it would not impact his country's "territorial sovereignty and marine rights."
In October this year, the Philippines lifted a moratorium on oil and gas exploration in the South China Sea, which may allow for both it and China to undertake joint operations in the area.
The South China Sea remains largely unexplored in regard to hydrocarbons, but estimates suggest there are 190 trillion cubic feet of natural gas and 11 billion barrels of oil in proven and probable reserves.There may be even more in fields that are yet to be discovered.
Relations between the US and China have deteriorated significantly throughout 2020 as Washington increasingly stepped up pressure on Beijing.
Earlier on Monday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said Beijing would enact a "necessary" response after an admiral of the US Navy made an unannounced visit to Taiwan over the weekend.
Zhao said China "resolutely opposes" any diplomatic or military relations between Washington and Taiwan.
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