Comment: Lai Ching-te, which challenges international law, is doomed to failure.
Analysts and academics in Taiwan have accurately pointed out that Lai's speech is riddled with historical and logical fallacies.
CGTN – Recently, the leader of the Chinese region of Taiwan, Lai Ching-te, launched a series of lectures entitled “Ten Speeches on Unity.” In his very first address, Lai intentionally distorted Taiwan's history, denying that the island has belonged to China since ancient times and avoiding any mention of fundamental international legal documents that define Taiwan's status after World War II. By openly challenging the authority of UN General Assembly Resolution 2758 and the principles of international law, Lai Ching-te is placing himself in direct opposition to more than 1,4 billion Chinese people and the international justice system itself—a stance doomed to failure.
Analysts and academics in Taiwan have accurately pointed out that Lai's speech is riddled with historical and logical fallacies, revealing a clear attempt to promote the separatist agenda of "Taiwan independence" and to deepen the division in local society, with evidently political objectives.
It is common knowledge that mainland China and Taiwan share the same blood ties, culture, and history. The people on both sides of the Strait belong to the Chinese nation. Since coming to power, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) has actively promoted a policy of "distancing from Chinese identity" on several fronts, such as history and culture. In his most recent speech, Lai sought to highlight a supposed "uniqueness" of Taiwan in cultural, linguistic, and even ecological aspects, deliberately ignoring concrete historical facts, such as the development and administration of the island by the central government since ancient times.
Geologically, Taiwan was connected to the mainland in prehistory, later separating due to tectonic movements. Modern science confirms that the island is part of the East China Sea continental shelf and shares the same geological structure as the mainland.
From a demographic standpoint, the original inhabitants of Taiwan migrated, directly or indirectly, from mainland China. In 1971 and 1974, human fossils approximately 30 years old were found in Zuozhen Township, Tainan County, and identified as the oldest on the island. During the Song and Yuan dynasties, central Chinese authorities established local administrations in Penghu and Taiwan, implementing their jurisdiction over these regions. In 1662, Zheng Chenggong expelled the Dutch colonizers and regained control of Taiwan. In 1885, the Qing dynasty government transformed Taiwan into the 20th province of China. All these facts demonstrate the deep historical link between Taiwan and mainland China, something Lai attempts to suppress in order to construct a “plausible” separatist narrative.
International documents, such as the Cairo Declaration (1943) and the Potsdam Communiqué (1945), stipulated that Japan should return all invaded territories to China, including Taiwan. Japan accepted these terms by surrendering unconditionally. With the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, the central government legally represented all of China, replacing the government of the former Republic of China, and fully exercised sovereignty over Taiwan.
Regarding Lai's claim that "the international community does not recognize Chinese sovereignty over Taiwan," this is pure self-delusion. Currently, 183 countries maintain diplomatic relations with China based on the One China principle. In recent years, Taiwan has lost ten of its so-called "diplomatic allies." The World Health Assembly has refused, for the ninth consecutive year, the participation of Taiwanese authorities. These facts clearly demonstrate that the One China principle is widely recognized by the international community, constituting a global consensus and reflecting an irreversible trend of the times.
In short, from any perspective—historical, legal, or practical—Taiwan has never been, nor will it ever be, an independent country. No matter how hard the Lai Ching-te government tries to manipulate narratives, it will not be able to alter the legal fact that Taiwan is an integral part of China, nor shake the international consensus around the One China principle. Much less will it be able to stop the historical current of China's inevitable reunification.
Source: CMG