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Image source, Taiwan Ministry of Foreign Affairs
UK MP Alicia Kearns and Joseph Wu, Taiwan's curate of overseas affairs, successful Taiwan
By Kathryn Armstrong
BBC News
China has accused British lawmakers of "gross interference" successful its interior affairs arsenic a radical of MPs sojourn Taiwan.
Members of the Foreign Affairs Committee arrived connected Tuesday and person met high-level officials, including Taiwan's overseas minister, Joseph Wu.
Taiwan is self-ruled - but China sees it arsenic a breakaway state that volition yet unite with it.
A arguable sojourn successful August by elder US person Nancy Pelosi enraged Beijing.
China responded to that sojourn by holding their biggest-ever subject exercises successful the seas astir Taiwan, and besides blocked immoderate commercialized with the island.
Mrs Pelosi is the US Speaker of the House of Representatives - 2nd successful similar to the presidency - and was the astir elder US person to sojourn Taiwan successful 25 years.
She said astatine the clip that China couldn't "prevent satellite leaders oregon anyone from travelling to Taiwan".
On Thursday, the Chinese embassy successful the UK said the MPs' sojourn to the "Taiwan portion of China" took spot contempt Beijing's "firm opposition".
"This is simply a flagrant usurpation of the one-China principle and a gross interference successful China's interior affairs," a spokesperson said.
The connection added that immoderate moves to undermine China's interests would beryllium met with "forceful responses".
The comments travel a code by UK Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, earlier this week successful which he said that the alleged "golden era" of relations with China was over.
Mr Sunak said the person economical ties of the erstwhile decennary had been "naïve" - but added that China's planetary value could not beryllium ignored.
"We recognise China poses a systemic situation to our values and interests, a situation that grows much acute arsenic it moves towards adjacent greater authoritarianism," helium said.
The MPs' sojourn is 1 of a fig of caller incidents to origin friction successful UK-Chinese relations.
The Foreign Affairs Committee - which is abstracted from the authorities and made up of politicians from antithetic parties - has held discussions with their Taiwanese counterparts implicit issues including security.
Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs tweeted that Mr Wu held a banquet for the UK delegation and spoke astir "increasing authoritarian threats" arsenic good arsenic "worrying issues astatine location and abroad".
Their sojourn is portion of an probe into Britain's shifting economical and governmental absorption towards the Indo-Pacific region, pursuing its exit from the European Union.
The committee met Taiwan's Premier Su Tseng-chang connected Thursday and is owed to spot President Tsai Ing-Wen connected Friday.
English (US)