China’s defence policy highlights Taiwan ‘threat’

It only has a passing mention of India; thrust on modernising navy, air force

HONG KONG: Taiwan authorities’ pursuit of a “radical policy” for the island’s independence, and their aim to create “de jure independence” through a constitutional reform process pose a “grave threat” to China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, according to a defence policy white paper released by Beijing last week. 

The white paper makes only a passing mention of India, noting that China was currently negotiating with its neighbour to settle boundary issues, and that China’s border and coastal defence forces had established and improved mechanisms for talks and meetings with their counterparts in neighbouring countries. 

The thrust of the policy document is on building up China’s military capability, particularly its navy and air force, in order to check Taiwan’s pro-independence push.

The message is synchronous with President Hu Jintao’s call last week for the creation of a powerful navy that would be ready “at any time” for military action. In his New Year address, Hu called on Chinese people around the world to join hands to oppose Taiwanese independence and work for a “reunification”.

China claims territorial sovereignty over the island, and says it is committed to “peaceful reunification” and abides by the “one country, two systems” formulation, but has repeatedly emphasised that it reserves the right to military action in the face of Taiwanese moves towards independence. 

The latest articulation of pro-independence views by Taipei came on New Year’s Day when President Chen Shui-bian, embattled by a succession of corruption scandals, reiterated that the island was an independent country.

“Taiwan belongs to 23 million people. It definitely does not belong to the People’s Republic of China,” he said in his New Year address. Taiwan, he emphasised, “is a part of the world, but not part of China.”

A Chinese government spokesperson criticised Chen’s comments, and said they reflected that he “spares no effort to make disturbances… and ruin the peaceful and stable development of cross-Strat ties.”

However, “we will never allow secessionists to separate Taiwan from the motherland in any name or by any way,” he added. 

The defence policy document also flags US support of Taiwan and Japan as causes for concern. It noted that although the US had repeatedly reiterated that it would abide by its ‘one China’ policy, it “continues to sell advanced weapons to Taiwan and has strengthened its military ties with Taiwan”.

It further claimed that some countries had “stirred up a racked about a ‘China threat’ and intensified their preventive strategy against China” in order to hamper its progress.