Chinese defense ministry urges U.S. to uphold one-China principle

BEIJING, Aug. 8 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese defense spokesperson on Friday urged the United States to cease any form of official interaction or military connection with China's Taiwan region.

Jiang Bin, a spokesperson for China's Ministry of National Defense, made the statement at a press conference in response to reports that the chairman of the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee may soon lead a congressional delegation to Taiwan.

"We require the U.S. side to abide by the one-China principle and the stipulations of the three China-U.S. joint communiques," Jiang said.

The United States should earnestly adhere to its promise that it would not support "Taiwan independence," and it should cease conniving with and supporting separatists in Taiwan, he said.

When commenting on Taiwan leader Lai Ching-te's claim that he would increase military expenditure, Jiang criticized Lai and his ilk for disregarding the well-being of people in Taiwan and attempting to squander the hard-earned wealth of those people on arms deals with the United States.

"They have no qualms about groveling to the United States and selling out the interests of Taiwan in exchange for support for their secessionist cause," he said.