In response to Taiwanese President Chen’s statements on independence, General Guo, who ranks second to President Hu in military chain of command, says mainland would attack. Foreign Minister Li yesterday branded anyone who wants to split Taipei from Beijing a “criminal.”

Beijing (AsiaNews/Agencies) – China’s armed forces would invade Taiwan should the island proclaim its independence, this according to General Guo Boxiong, State news agency Xinhua reported. General Guo, who ranks second only to President and Armed Forces Chairman Hu Jintao, made these comments during a discussion with military delegates to the National People’s Congress (NPC) currently underway in Beijing.

The People's Liberation Army (PLA) would respond to a declaration of independence and “"effectively perform our glorious mission of safeguarding national sovereignty and territorial integrity in accordance with the will of the motherland and the wishes of the people,” the general said. He urged PLA soldiers and officers to “heighten [their] sense of responsibility and sense of urgency” and make an all-out effort to “get well-prepared for military struggle.”

The general’s comments came in the wake of statements made by Taiwan's President Chen Shui-bian who last Sunday said that “Taiwan should be independent” and that it was “a country whose sovereignty lies outside the People's Republic of China.”

China's Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing also responded to President Chen saying that anyone trying to split Taiwan from the mainland was a “criminal” and that China was ready to enforce its “anti-secession law” (which calls for military action in case of Taiwan’s independence).

Similarly, in a speech before the NPC, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao reiterated his government’s policy vis-à-vis Taiwan.

“We are resolutely opposed to Taiwan seeking de jure independence” and “all acts seeking independence,” he said. As in the case of Hong Kong, unification will be achieved on the basis of the “policy of ‘one country, two systems’.”

China on Sunday also announced a 17.8 per cent rise in military spending this year to 350 billion yuan but the United States believes the figure to be much higher.

Still, Washington said the mainland represents no military threat to others and has several times reminded Taiwan not to alter the status quo.

“Rhetoric that could raise doubts about these commitments [to the status quo] is unhelpful," State department spokesman Sean McCormack said.

• china
• taiwan
• invasion
• guo
• boxiong
• hu
• jintao
• chen
• shui-bian
• independence