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TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday (March 18) claimed that Taiwan is part of China, prompting the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) to state that Taiwan is a sovereign, independent country, “not subordinate to the People’s Republic of China.”
During a press conference from his election headquarters, Putin declared he had achieved a landslide victory with 87% of the vote for a new six-year term. Among the questions asked by the media was Putin’s take on the current state of Russian-Chinese relations and what direction they will head in during his new term.
Putin said that China is growing at a very rapid rate and moving toward a more “innovative nature,” while Russia seeks to make similar advancements. Putin said that China is very active on the international stage having achieved “a lot of success” and they have “a lot of friends across the world.”
However, he said that there are moves made by “unfriendly countries” against China. He accused these unnamed countries of making “all kinds of provocations around Taiwan.”
Putin then claimed that Taiwan is “an inherent part of the People’s Republic of China.” He chastised the West for imposing sanctions on China, which he said were designed to “stop its development, to hinder its development.”
He said all such actions are “doomed to failure.”
When asked by Taiwan News for comment, a MOFA spokesperson issued a statement debunking Putin’s claims. The ministry emphasized that Taiwan is a “sovereign and independent country and is not subordinate to the People’s Republic of China. This has been a long-standing fact and status quo recognized by the international community for many years.”
The ministry added that Taiwan elected a new president and vice president on Jan. 13, 2024, through “fair, just, and open elections.” According to MOFA, this successful election “demonstrated the fact that Taiwan is a sovereign country with a mature and stable democratic system.”
It said this achievement has been “widely acknowledged and affirmed by the international community.” The ministry closed by stating, “Any attempt to distort Taiwan’s sovereignty status cannot change the internationally recognized cross-strait status quo.”
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