(Beijing): China defended Cambodia's commitment to the "One-China" policy after Taiwan announced tighter visa restrictions for Cambodian citizens.

Speaking at a regular press conference on Sunday (Jul. 20), Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian reaffirmed Beijing's position, stating that "Taiwan is an inalienable part of China's territory. This is a prevailing consensus in the international community."

“By exploiting people-to-people facilitation measures to coerce other countries, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities’ moves constitute a blatant challenge to the one-China principle, a basic norm in international relations, and once again lay bare the malignant nature of their “Taiwan independence” separatist agenda,” he said.

He added that Cambodia's continued adherence to the One-China principle demonstrates the lack of international support for Taiwan's independence movement.

"The firm commitment of the Cambodian government to the one-China principle fully proves that the DPP authorities' separatist playbook finds no support and will lead nowhere," Lin said.

"Our message to the DPP authorities is clear: The historical trend is unstoppable, and 'Taiwan independence' is a dead end."

Taiwan's authorities announced on 17 July that Cambodia will be removed from two visa facilitation programmes effective 1 August. The measures include Cambodia's removal from the Guanhong Project, which streamlines visa applications for organised tour groups, and the Travel Authorisation Certificate (TAC) programme, which allows eligible travellers to enter Taiwan without obtaining a visa in advance under certain conditions.
=FRESH NEWS