Chinese mainland slams Lai Ching-te as 'saboteur of cross-Strait peace'

BEIJING -- The Chinese mainland on Wednesday said that Lai Ching-te's actions since taking office as Taiwan's leader have fully proven that he is a "saboteur of peace" and a "crisis maker" across the Taiwan Strait.

Chen Binhua, a spokesperson for the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, made the remarks during a press conference, as Lai Ching-te is about to complete his first year in office as Taiwan's leader.

The Lai authorities have defied mainstream public opinion in Taiwan, refused to acknowledge the 1992 Consensus, and obstinately adhered to a separatist "Taiwan independence" stance, Chen said.

The Lai authorities have wantonly advocated the fallacy of separatism and suppressing cross-Strait exchanges, and fabricated a false "democracy versus authoritarianism" narrative to mislead both people of Taiwan and the international community, he added.

Disregarding economic realities, the Lai authorities also advocated a decoupling of cross-Strait trade and industrial supply chains, which harms the interests of Taiwan businesses and people, the spokesperson said.

Furthermore, the Lai authorities have sought to curry favor with external forces and betrayed Taiwan's interests in pursuit of "independence through external support" and "independence through force," he said.

Such actions, Chen said, have escalated tensions and undermined peace across the Taiwan Strait, fully proving that Lai is a "saboteur of peace" and a "crisis maker" across the Strait.

"Taiwan has been an inalienable part of China, and no words or deeds from Lai can alter this fact," he said. "No matter how the situation on the Taiwan island evolves or what troubles external forces may make, the historical trend toward China's ultimate and inevitable reunification is unstoppable."

The spokesperson called on Taiwan compatriots to stand on the right side of history and join efforts to oppose "Taiwan independence" separatist activities and foreign interference, safeguard the shared homeland of the Chinese nation, and work together toward national reunification and rejuvenation.