Beijing calls on United States to 'stop meddling' in Taiwan

The US should cease its interference in the Taiwan situation, China's Foreign Ministry said on Friday, after the head of the CIA warned against underestimating Chinese President Xi Jinping's readiness to take military action against the island nation.

Taiwan is "purely a Chinese internal affair" and cannot be compared with the conflict over Ukraine, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told a press briefing in Beijing.

Washington should "stop meddling in the Taiwan question and stop creating new factors that could lead to tensions in the Taiwan Strait," Mao said.

According to US media reports, CIA director William Burns said Xi had instructed his military to be ready for an invasion of the island state by 2027.

That did not mean he had decided to invade in that year, but it is a reminder of how serious he is about it, Burns said, adding that China's president is also drawing lessons from the war in Ukraine.

The Chinese ministry spokesperson also accused the government in Taipei of bearing responsibility for the tensions, which have increased since Russia's invasion of Ukraine almost one year ago. People in the United States were using the Taiwan issue to contain China, she claimed.

Washington should fulfil its pledges not to support Taiwan's independence, Mao said, adding that Beijing regards Taiwan and its population of 23 million people as an "inalienable part of China's territory."

Taiwan, which has never been part of the People's Republic of China, has long considered itself independent. The US remains committed to the island's defence, including with arms supplies, and rejects any violent change in the status quo as unacceptable.

The latest criticism of US policy on Taiwan came shortly before Antony Blinken is scheduled to arrive in Beijing on Sunday for the first visit of a US Secretary of State since October 2018.