Mainland coast guard patrols in relevant waters normal duty: spokeswoman

It is a normal duty for the Chinese mainland coast guard to conduct law enforcement patrols in relevant sea areas in accordance with the law, Zhu Fenglian, spokeswoman for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, said at a press briefing in Beijing on Wednesday.

The Fujian coast guard conducted law-enforcement patrols in waters near Kinmen in accordance with the law in late May, according to the China Coast Guard Donghai Branch.

"Both sides of the Taiwan Strait belong to one and the same China. Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen, and Matsu are all part of China. The mainland coast guard's law enforcement patrols in the relevant waters, which maintain order in maritime operations and safeguard the lives and property of fishermen on both sides of the Strait, constitute the normal performance of their duties," she said.

Any attempt by Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities to smear the "one country, two systems" principle is doomed to fail, Zhu Fenglian, spokeswoman for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council said at a press conference in Beijing on Wednesday.

She made the remarks in response to a media query about the recent remarks made by Shen Yu-chung, a Taiwan official, on the "one country, two systems" principle.

"Taiwan is China's Taiwan, and the future of Taiwan can only and must be decided by the more than 1.4 billion Chinese people, including Taiwan compatriots. Peaceful reunification and 'one country, two systems' represent the best way to realize national reunification and best serve the fundamental interests of the Chinese nation, including compatriots in Taiwan. The DPP authorities, driven by their separatist agenda, have gone out of their way to reject peaceful reunification and smear 'one country, two systems' in an attempt to mislead public opinion and fool the people in Taiwan. Such attempts will not succeed. It must be emphasized that differences in systems are not an obstacle to reunification, still less an excuse for separatism. A growing number of insightful people in Taiwan have refused to be coerced or deceived by the DPP authorities and are supporting peaceful reunification across the Taiwan Strait," said Zhu.