China’s Foreign Ministry Issues First Statement on Taiwan Opening a Rep Office in Somaliland

The Chinese Foreign Ministry responded on Tuesday to Taiwan’s opening of a new representative office earlier this week in the self-declared state of Somaliland in the Horn of Africa. At his regular press briefing in Beijing on Tuesday, spokesman Zhao Lijian repeated Beijing’s longstanding position that “Taiwan is an inalienable part of China” and issued the standard denunciation against Taiwan’s diplomatic activities.

COMMENTARY: Zhao’s four-sentence statement on the matter was unexceptional in every way, which is again a bit surprising given the intensity that the Chinese are bringing to other core strategic issues like Huawei and U.S.-China ties. Zhao didn’t call on the African Union to rally behind the One China policy, Beijing’s normally aggressive media outlets like Global Times are quiet on the matter, as is China’s new army of diplomatic Twitter warriors in Africa.