{"id":644293,"date":"2019-06-02T11:42:13","date_gmt":"2019-06-02T11:42:13","guid":{"rendered":"
\"Chinese<\/p>\n
\n
\"Chinese<\/div>\n

China\u2019s Defence Minister Wei Fenghe said on Sunday that China will fight to the end , if anyone tries to interfere with its relation with Taiwan.<\/p>\n

Fenghe made this known at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, Asia\u2019s premier defense summit.<\/p>\n

He said that a war with the United States would be a disaster for the world while issuing a warning to Washington not to meddle in security disputes over Taiwan and the South China Sea.<\/p>\n

China has been incensed by recent moves by U.S. President Donald Trump\u2019s administration to increase support for self-ruled and democratic Taiwan, including U.S. Navy sailings through the Taiwan Strait that separates the island from mainland China.<\/p>\n

Wei said China would \u201cfight to the end\u201d if anyone tried to interfere in its relationship with Taiwan, which Beijing considers a sacred territory to be taken by force if necessary.<\/p>\n

Wei, the first Chinese defense minister to speak at the Shangri-La Dialogue since 2011, said Beijing\u2019s military operations in Asia were purely aimed at self-defense, but it would not hesitate to counter an attack on its interests.<\/p>\n

\u201cChina will not attack unless we are attacked,\u201d Wei said, cautioning that there would be dire consequences to any clash between China and the United States.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe two sides realize that conflict, or a war between them, would bring disaster to both countries and the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

The United States, like most countries, has no formal ties with Taiwan, but is its strongest backer and main source of weapons.<\/p>\n

On Saturday, acting U.S. Defence Secretary Patrick Shanahan told the Shangri-La meeting that the United States would no longer \u201ctiptoe\u201d around Chinese behavior in Asia.<\/p>\n

While Shanahan\u2019s speech was critical of China, his tone was often conciliatory. Wei took a more combative approach.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo attempts to split China will succeed. Any interference in the Taiwan question is doomed to failure,\u201d said Wei, dressed in his uniform of a general in the People\u2019s Liberation Army.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf anyone dares to split Taiwan from China, the Chinese military has no choice but to fight at all costs\u2026 The U.S. is indivisible, and so is China. China must be, and will be, reunified.\u201d<\/p>\n

China-U. S. ties have become increasingly strained due to a bitter trade war, U.S. support for Taiwan and China\u2019s muscular military posture in the South China Sea, where the United States also conducts freedom-of-navigation patrols.<\/p>\n

\n
Get more stories like this on Twitter<\/a><\/i><\/div>\n

<\/div>\n<\/div>\n