China has no right to represent Taiwan, says Taiwanese president

• Taiwan has never been and will never be a country, so it has no so-called 'sovereignty,' China’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman says in response

ANKARA

Taiwan's President Lai Ching-te said on Thursday that China has no right to represent his country as Taipei is not a "subordinate" to Beijing.

“The Republic of China (Taiwan), and the People’s Republic of China are not subordinate to each other. On this land, democracy and freedom are growing and thriving. The People’s Republic of China has no right to represent Taiwan,” Lai said in a National Day speech in Taipei, which was later transcribed and released by his office.

Giving a keynote speech outside the presidential office titled "Taiwan together for our shared dream," he added that Taiwan's 23 million people, more than ever, must reach out to our branches to embrace the future.

China considers Taiwan its “breakaway province” while Taipei has maintained its independence since 1949.

Over subsequent decades, the Republic of China, which began as a country in mainland China in 1912, following the 1911 revolution, has become commonly known as Taiwan.

He said he would uphold the commitment "to resist annexation or encroachment" on Taiwan's sovereignty.

“We hope that China will live up to the expectations of the international community, that it will apply its influence and work with other countries toward ending Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and conflicts in the Middle East,” he went on to say.

“And we hope that it will take up its international responsibilities and, along with Taiwan, contribute to the peace, security, and prosperity of the region and the globe.

“We are willing to work with China on addressing climate change, combating infectious diseases, and maintaining regional security to pursue peace and mutual prosperity for the well-being of the people on the two sides of the Taiwan Strait,” Lai said.

Taiwan, he went on to say, is resolved in its commitment to upholding peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and achieving global security and prosperity.

China rejects remarks

China, for its part, condemned Taiwan's leader for being "hell-bent" on the island country's independence.

Lai’s speech “exposed his hell-bent position on Taiwan independence and his sinister intention to escalate tensions in the Taiwan Strait for political self-interest,” China’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning told a regular press briefing in Beijing on Thursday.

Taiwan has never been and will never be a country, so it has no so-called “sovereignty," Mao stated.

Lai’s comments, she further said, “arbitrarily severed the historical connection between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait” and used “all manner of tactics to peddle the fantasy of Taiwan independence.”