Taipei, Feb. 6 (CNA) Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) on Tuesday expressed gratitude for the recent remarks by South Korea’s top envoy to China in which he reiterated Seoul’s stance of calling for cross-strait peace and said his country would continue promoting ties with Taiwan despite the lack of official relations.
MOFA deputy spokesman Hsiao Kuangwei (蕭光偉) told reporters that the ministry had heard the remarks made by Chung Jae-ho, South Korea’s ambassador to China while speaking with South Korean correspondents in Beijing.
During that meeting Chung said Seoul would continue promoting “practical cooperation with Taiwan” in various fields based on its stance of respect for the ‘One China [principle]’.”
The envoy also said Seoul hopes that “peace and stability will be maintained across the Taiwan Strait and that cross-strait relations will develop peacefully.”
Thanking Chung for reaffirming his government’s stance on Taiwan, Hsiao said like many other like-minded democracies, South Korea and the United States have issued a series of joint statements calling for cross-strait peace in the past year.
Taiwan will continue to work closely with South Korea and other like-minded countries to promote shared values of democracy, freedom, human rights, and the rule of law to maintain peace and prosperity in the region, and to ensure closer exchanges with Seoul, Hsiao added.
The Taiwan issue has emerged as a source of conflict between China and South Korea in recent years, as the current Yoon Suk-yeol administration has been more vocal in opposing China’s “unilateral attempts to change the status quo by force” in the Taiwan Strait.
In an interview with Reuters before his six-day visit to the U.S. from April 24-29 last year, during which he met with President Joe Biden, Yoon said the increased tensions around Taiwan were due to attempts to change the status quo by force.
The South Korean president also said the Taiwan matter is not just an issue between China and Taiwan but a global issue, like that of North Korea.
China, which sees Taiwan as part of its territory, immediately criticized Yoon, accusing him of meddling in its “internal affairs.” At that time, then Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang (秦剛) had warned Seoul that those who “play with fire” (referring to Taiwan) would eventually get burned.
