Australian lawmakers’ Taiwan visits could cool warming ties with Beijing

“Australian members of parliament or the former prime minister are both political figures,” Xiao told journalists at an event honouring the 74th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China. “Visiting Taiwan carries an obvious political meaning, and is a wrong signal sent to Taiwan independence forces.”

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Beijing views the island as a renegade province that should be reintegrated into mainland control, by force if necessary. While many nations, including the US, do not officially acknowledge Taiwan as an independent state, they oppose any use of force to alter the existing status quo.

The dispute threatens to interrupt a rapid improvement in diplomatic ties between Australia and China following the election of the centre-left Labor government in May 2022.

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Taiwan holds nuclear emergency drill as mainland Chinese planes enter island’s air defence zone

Taiwan holds nuclear emergency drill as mainland Chinese planes enter island’s air defence zone

Morrison, a strident critic of the Chinese government, said in response to Xiao’s comments that Beijing had no right to tell Australian lawmakers where they could and could not travel.

“The Chinese government in Beijing does not get to decide whether Australian members of parliament can visit Taiwan or not, nor do they get to tell Australians or the world what Australia’s one-China policy means,” he told The Australian newspaper.