[Jimbuna]

China says Lai’s win in Taiwan will not change landscape of cross-strait relations

As Taiwan’s ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) pulled off a historic win with voters shrugging off China’s concern about presidential candidate Lai Chinge-te, Beijing attempted to downplay his influence.

Taiwan’s current vice president, Mr Lai, issued a defiant message to China as he declared victory on Saturday evening.

“This is a night that belongs to Taiwan. We managed to keep Taiwan on the map of the world,” he said at a rally after the declaration of results. “The election has shown the world the commitment of the Taiwanese people to democracy, which I hope China can understand,” he added.

Mr Lai’s DPP has consistently rejected China’s territorial claims over Taiwan, while he has been denounced by Beijing.

The Chinese government responded to his win by calling Taiwan “China’s Taiwan” and adding that their commitment to “reunification” remained “as firm as rock”.

Following his win, China’s Taiwan Affairs Office issued a statement saying Mr Lai’s win would not change the basic landscape of cross-strait relations.

In a statement carried on China’s state Xinhua news agency, Chen Binhua, a spokesperson for the office, said the results showed the Democratic Progressive Party cannot represent mainstream public opinion on the island.

The electorates were mainly choosing between the governing DPP, which champions Taiwan‘s separate identity and rejects China’s territorial claims, and the opposition Nationalist Party, Kuomintang, which wants to expand trade ties with China.

The result showed that Mr Lai won more than 40 per cent of the vote, while the KMT candidate, Hou Yu-ih garnered 33.49 per cent, indicating support for DPP’s view on Taiwan’s claim for sovereignty, leaving Beijing visibility uncomfortable.
https://www.independent.co.uk/asia/c...-b2478346.html