Beijing drives home one-China stance

Beijing drives home one-China stance

CHINA: Beijing bristled on Saturday at Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian's plans to send a delegation of negotiators from his party to China, saying they would only be welcome if the party abandoned its pro-independence platform.

An official of the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, China's cabinet, said Taiwan needed to take "practical and sincere" actions to back up overtures Chen made in a speech on Thursday, the official China Daily reported.

"Delegations of the Taiwan Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) are welcome to visit the mainland, provided that the DPP accept the one-China principle and give up its 'Taiwan independence' platform," the newspaper quoted the unnamed official saying.

Beijing, which regards Taiwan as a breakaway province, has refused to deal with Chen and his ruling DPP and threatened to attack the self-governing island if it declares statehood or drags its feet on reunification. -- Reuters