One China policy 'nonnegotiable', China tells US

BEIJING  -- China on Saturday told the United States that one China policy is the political foundation of bilateral ties and "is nonnegotiable."

Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang made the remarks in response to US President-elect Donald Trump's statement that the one China policy on Taiwan is up for negotiation and that he is not fully committed to it.

"Everything is under negotiation including one China," Trump was quoted as saying in a Friday interview with the Wall Street Journal.

It must be pointed out that there is but one China in the world, and that Taiwan is an inalienable part of China, Lu said in a statement issued on Saturday evening.

The government of the People's Republic of China is the only legitimate government representing China, "which is an internationally recognized fact and no one can change it," said Lu.

"We urge the relevant party in the United States to realize the high sensitivity of the Taiwan issue and abide by commitments made by previous US governments to the one China policy and the principles of the three joint communiques," he said.

Lu urged the US side to properly deal with the Taiwan issue so as to avoid undermining the healthy and steady development of bilateral ties and cooperation in major areas.