China has reaffirmed its commitment to the One-China principle, stating that Taiwan is not a sovereign nation but an inseparable part of Chinese territory.

Counselor at the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in Nigeria, Dong Hairong, made this known on Thursday at a Media Salon held in Abuja by the Centre for China Studies and the Centre for Contemporary China-Africa Research.

Hairong reiterated that recent developments involving Taiwan showed the need for greater international understanding of the Taiwan question and China’s territorial position.

She cited the recent visit of Taiwan regional leader, Lai Ching-te, to Eswatini, as well as a reported engagement between some Nigerian journalists and Taiwanese officials, as examples of what she described as attempts to advance separatist narratives.

“Taiwan has been an inalienable part of Chinese territory since ancient times,”

“Taiwan has never been a country, was never one, and will never be,” Dong said..

On his part, Otunba Segun Showunmi, Convener of The Alternative Movement, stated that Nigeria should deepen strategic cooperation with China, noting that Beijing had emerged as a major global economic and technological power.

Showunmi said Nigeria stood to gain more from stronger ties with China than from separate engagements with Taiwan.

“In another 100 years, what Nigeria will gain from a firm relationship with China, Taiwan will not be able to provide in 1,000 years,” he said.

Also speaking, Prof. Ghali Ibrahim, Provost of the Anti-Corruption Academy of Nigeria and Director of the Centre for China-Africa Research, stated that the One-China principle had gained broad global recognition because Taiwan lacks the legal status of a sovereign state.

“Taiwan is not an independent sovereign entity but rather a territory that is part of China,” he said.