The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) today (October 13, 2021) responded to malicious attacks made by China’s Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) on President Tsai Ing-wen’s statement that “the Republic of China (ROC) and the People’s Republic of China (PRC) should not be subordinate to each other,” which was criticized as touting the "two-states” theory and plotting independence. The MAC emphasized that the ROC is a sovereign and independent nation, which was established 38 years prior to the founding of PRC and has stood firm for the past 110 years. The ROC currently exercises jurisdiction over Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen, and Matsu, and has never been ruled by the PRC. The president's position that “the two sides across the Taiwan Strait should not be subordinate to each other” is a solemn clarification of the fact about and current status quo of the Taiwan Strait.
The MAC indicated that the other side across the Taiwan Strait put forward its unilateral political frameworks such as the "one country, two systems," "1992 Consensus" under the "one China” principle, and others, which have already been categorically rejected by the people of Taiwan. The CCP authorities have constantly vowed to achieve unification with Taiwan, and have recently escalated their political and military intimidation that undermine the status quo of the Taiwan Strait. These acts are the main source of tension in cross-Strait relations and regional unrest. The president's address was an emphatic response to the other side that the ROC does not condone violation of its national sovereignty and that the two sides across the Taiwan Strait are not subordinate to each other. Only through principles of peace, parity, democracy, and dialogue, will the two sides develop normal relations characterized by benign interactions.
The MAC reiterated that the government remains consistent in its policy stance of maintaining the peaceful and stable status quo across the Taiwan Strait. President Tsai's "four commitments" represent the bottom line and greatest common denominator of the people of Taiwan; the TAO’s comments that President Tsai intended to kidnap the will of Taiwanese people is simply misleading. The MAC called on the other side across the Taiwan Strait to face up to the existence of the ROC pragmatically and avoid repeatedly misjudging the situation or making provocation. Any irrational moves will only put them in a dire predicament.