Rice: Taiwan UN referendum bid 'provocative'

Washington -- Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said on Friday that the United States opposes Taiwan's proposed referendum to apply to the United Nations under the name Taiwan, saying that the move is a "provocative" policy.

"As we have stated in recent months, we think that Taiwan's referendum to apply to the United Nations under the name Taiwan is a provocative policy," Rice said at a press conference in the State Department.

"It unnecessarily raises tensions in the Taiwan Strait, and it promises no real benefits for the people of Taiwan on the international stage. That is why we oppose this referendum," the secretary of state said.

"We have a one-China policy and we do not support independence for Taiwan," she stressed

US Stance Valued

 China values the United States' reiterated opposition to "Taiwan's referendum" on UN membership, Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang said in Beijing Saturday.

Qin said China appreciates the United States' reiteration in many occasions of its adherence to one-China policy, observance to three China-US joint communiques, and opposition to "Taiwan independence" and to Taiwan's proposed "referendum" on UN membership.

Qin hoped that the United States would continue taking effective measures to work with China to deter "Taiwan's referendum" and other secessionist moves of "Taiwan independence", in a bid to maintain peace and stability across the Taiwan Straits.