Taiwan’s presidential election took place last Saturday, and made a lot of noise over the weekend. Many countries, including Central Asian states, such as Kazakhstan and Tajikistan, are in favor of preserving the territorial integrity of China. This became clear from the statements published by the foreign ministries of these countries:
“Turkmenistan expresses its firm support for the principle of ‘one China’ and reaffirms that the government of the People’s Republic of China is the only legitimate government representing the whole of China.” – Turkmenistan.
“The Government of the People’s Republic of China is the sole legitimate government of China, and Taiwan is an integral part of the territory of China.” – Uzbekistan.
“Recognizing Taiwan as an integral part of China’s territory, Tajikistan firmly opposes any attempts of external interference in the internal affairs of this friendly country.” – Tajikistan.
“We support the efforts of the government of the People’s Republic of China to realize the peaceful reunification of the country.” – Kazakhstan.
With 40% of the vote, the nominee of the Democratic Progressive Party, Lai Ching-te won the election, whilst the representative of the pro-Chinese National Party (Kuomintang), Hou Yu-ih secured 33.5% of the votes, and the representative of the neutral Taiwanese People’s Party, Ke Wen-je, secured 26.5%. “The election has shown the world the commitment of the Taiwanese people to democracy, which I hope China can understand,” Ching-te stated.
