China on Sunday slammed officials from the U.S. and other countries for congratulating Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen after she was re-elected with a landslide victory in a stunning rebuke of Beijing’s campaign to isolate the self-ruled island.
Ms. Tsai, who had pitched herself as a defender of liberal democratic values against an increasingly authoritarian China, secured a record-breaking win in Saturday’s presidential election.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, as well as top diplomats from Britain and Japan, issued statements congratulating Ms. Tsai and the island’s elections.
But Beijing, which views Taiwan as part of its territory, denounced their actions as violating the one-China principle. “The Chinese side expresses strong dissatisfaction and resolute opposition to this,” said Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang.
“We oppose any form of official exchange between Taiwan and countries that have established diplomatic relations with China,” he said in a statement.
Chinese State media also sought to downplay Ms. Tsai’s victory and cast doubt on the legitimacy of her campaign by accusing the Taiwanese leader of “dirty tactics” and cheating.
Ms. Tsai and her Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) used “dirty tactics such as cheating, repression and intimidation to get votes, fully exposing their selfish, greedy and evil nature”, said official news agency Xinhua in an op-ed on Sunday.
Xinhua also accused Ms. Tsai of buying votes, and said “external dark forces” were partly responsible for the election results.
Beijing, which has vowed to one day take Taiwan — by force if necessary — loathes Ms. Tsai because she refuses to acknowledge the idea that Taiwan is part of “one China”.
China doubled down on its “one-China principle” after Ms. Tsai’s victory, with Mr. Geng emphasising Sunday that “regardless of what happens in Taiwan, the basic facts won’t change: there is only one China in the world and Taiwan is part of China”.
“The Chinese government’s position won’t change,” he added in a statement.
