Pakistan firmly believes in the one-China principle and supports China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. Pakistan will continue to extend full support to its “iron brother” – China, on issues concerning its core national interest, Pakistani Ambassador to China Moin ul Haque told the Global Times in an exclusive interview on Saturday, responding to question of US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s provocative visit to Taiwan.
Regarding China’s countermeasures, the ambassador noted that “within the bounds of international law, every country has the right to safeguard its sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
“In the same vein, Pakistan supports all efforts of the Chinese government in safeguarding its national sovereignty and territorial integrity,” he said.
He also emphasized the importance of upholding the principles of the UN charter, international law and bilateral agreements. Inter-state relations should be based on mutual respect and non-interference in internal affairs, he said.
Pelosi arrived in China’s Taiwan island on Tuesday night in disregard of China’s strong opposition and serious representations. The visit is seen as a serious violation of the one-China principle. On Friday, Chinese Foreign Ministry announced eight countermeasures in response.
The countermeasures include canceling China-US Theater Commanders Talk, canceling China-US Defense Policy Coordination Talks, canceling China-US Military Maritime Consultative Agreement meetings, suspending China-US cooperation on the repatriation of illegal immigrants, suspending China-US cooperation on legal assistance in criminal matters, suspending China-US cooperation against transnational crimes, suspending China-US counternarcotics cooperation and suspending China-US talks on climate change.
On Tuesday, Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Islamabad issued a statement reaffirming Pakistan’s strong commitment to the one-China principle and said Pakistan firmly supports China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
The ambassador said, “As ‘iron brothers’ and ‘All-Weather Strategic Cooperative Partners,’ Pakistan and China have always stood shoulder-to-shoulder with each other through many challenges.”
“I would like to emphasize here that Pakistan would continue to extend full support to its ‘iron brother’ China on the issues of its core national interest,” he said.
According to the ambassador, the current global geo-political situation remains tense as the world is already grappling with multi-faceted challenges.
“The regional situation in Taiwan Straits was indeed complicated with the visit. We believe that the world cannot afford another crisis with far-reaching implications for regional and global peace and security,” he said.
“The ‘one-China’ policy outlines that there is only one China in the world; the Government of the People’s Republic of China is the sole legal government representing the whole China; and Taiwan is an inalienable part of China. This concept is about China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, which needs to be respected. Therefore, Pakistan opposes any attempt to create ‘two Chinas’ or ‘one China, one Taiwan’ or ‘Taiwan independence,'” he said.
During the interview, Ambassador Haque once again reaffirmed Pakistan’s “unwavering support” to China on the issues of its core interest including Taiwan, Xinjiang, Tibet, Hong Kong and South China Sea.
