February 18, 2022
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) strongly opposes the statement that “Taiwan is an inalienable part of China” and associated comments made by Beijing Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games spokesperson Yan Jiarong during a February 17 press conference. The use of Olympic Games venues by Chinese officials to make inappropriate political comments violates provisions in the Olympic Charter, and the statement was rebutted by International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach, who requested that China remain politically neutral in keeping with the spirit of the Charter. MOFA strongly condemns China for making untrue statements that demean the sovereignty of the Republic of China (Taiwan), and expresses its solemn protest.
MOFA reiterates that Taiwan is Taiwan, and that neither the Republic of China (Taiwan) nor the People’s Republic of China is subordinate to the other. The PRC government has never ruled Taiwan. Only the freely elected Taiwan government can represent the people of Taiwan in the international community, and no distortion of the truth by the PRC will ever change this fact.
Taiwan participates in Olympic events as an independent entity, and not as part of another country. The Olympic Games provide a venue for peaceful competition between nations. Spokesperson Yan’s intentional disregard for the fact that the Republic of China (Taiwan) is a sovereignty nation overshadows the spirit of peace symbolized by the Olympic rings; this manipulative action will be rejected by the people of Taiwan and condemned by the international community.