China Urges Australia Not to Abandon Support for Taiwan Reunification
Voice of America
SYDNEY - China cautioned Australia to abide by its 'One China' policy after a senior Australian on Sunday warned of a potential conflict over Taiwanese independence.
Speaking on an Australian news talk show, Australian Defense Minister Peter Dutton said he couldn't rule out a military confrontation over Taiwan. "I do not think it should be discounted. I think China has been very clear about the reunification and that has been a long-held objective of theirs and if you look at any of the rhetoric coming out of China from spokesmen particularly in recent weeks and months in response to different suggestions that have been made, they have been very clear about that goal." Currently, relations between Australia and China, its most valuable trading partner, are at their worst in decades. There have been trade and political tensions as well as disagreements over human rights. Canberra's call last year for an inquiry into the origins of the coronavirus, which was first detected in China in 2019, offended Beijing. It interpreted Australia's demand as criticism of its handling of the pandemic. Bilateral ties have deteriorated ever since.A TV screen shows a file image of North Korea's rocket launch during a news program at a bus terminal in Seoul, South Korea, May 27, 2024. FILE - Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi speaks to reporters in Colombo, July 29, 2023. FILE - A TV screen shows a report of North Korea's spy satellite into orbit with its third launch attempt this year with an image of North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un during a news program at the Seoul Railway Station in Seoul, South Korea, Nov. 22, 2023.
Palestinians gather at the site of an Israeli strike on a camp for internally displaced people in Rafah on May 27, 2024. Fire rages following an Israeli strike on an area designated for displaced Palestinians, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, in this still picture taken from a video, May 26, 2024. Palestinians gather at the site of an Israeli strike on a camp for internally displaced people in Rafah on May 27, 2024. A member of the bomb squad of the Israeli police collects debris after a rocket fired by Palestinian militants struck in the Israeli city of Herzliya on May 26, 2024.