The State Council of the PRC today (March 5, 2021) presented its Government Work Report at the National People's Congress (NPC), where it reiterated its Taiwan policy characterized by the "one China principle." The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) emphasized that Taiwan’s public opinion has long advocated maintaining the status quo. The government has remained consistent in its cross-Strait policy stance aiming at promoting peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, and will continue to firmly defend national sovereignty and Taiwan’s democracy and freedom. The MAC will carry on monitoring the Taiwan-related remarks and moves made during the PRC’s “Two Sessions” and their impacts on cross-Strait relations.
The MAC stressed that benign cross-Strait interactions are the responsibility of both sides across the Taiwan Strait. Healthy and orderly exchanges prevail over coercive pressuring against Taiwan. We called on the other side of the Taiwan Strait to commit to matching efforts and responsibility-sharing in order to resume friendly cross-Strait interaction. We also appealed to Mainland China to, with spirits of mutual respect, goodwill, and understanding in mind, face up to and respect the opposition and skepticism of the Taiwanese public towards the political frameworks belittling Taiwan and the negative united front campaigns oppressing Taiwan. Mainland China should genuinely and pragmatically consider goodwill measures, and gradually resolve differences through communication to truly protect the rights of people across the Taiwan Strait.