Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun criticized a move by some Panamanian lawmakers to establish contacts with Taiwan, warning that politicians who cross Beijing’s red lines on the issue would face serious consequences.
Reports said some members of Panama’s legislature had formed a group described as the “Panama-Taiwan Legislative Yuan Cross-Party Exchange Group.” US members of Congress joined its meeting online.
Panama’s President José Raúl Mulino said publicly that the government sets the country’s foreign policy and does not support lawmakers engaging with Taiwan.
Guo said there is only one China and Taiwan is an inseparable part of Chinese territory. China firmly opposes any official exchanges or contacts between countries with which it has diplomatic relations and Taiwan’s authorities.
The Chinese spokesperson said the group’s creation ran counter to Panama’s longstanding commitment to the one-China principle. Beijing urged the Panamanian government to uphold the principle and protect the political foundation of China-Panama relations.
China also urged the United States to abide by the one-China principle and the three China-US joint communiqués, stop sending misleading signals to supporters of Taiwan independence and refrain from disrupting China-Panama ties.
