Iranian newspaper declares ‘Taiwan independence is a legal right’ | Taiwan News | 2022-12-14 11:04:00 | CPT PPP Coverage

Cryptopolytech (CPT) Public Press Pass (PPP)
News of the Day COVERAGE

200000048 – World Newser
•| #World |•| #Online |•| #Media |•| #Outlet |

View more Headlines & Breaking News here, as covered by cryptopolytech.com

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The mention of three disputed islands in a joint statement issued by China and Saudi Arabia issued on Friday (Dec. 9) led to diplomatic protests by Iran and provocative language in the Iranian press, including one newspaper headline which read “Taiwan independence is a legal right.”

The joint statement of the 2022 China-Arab States Summit read: “The leaders affirmed their support for all peaceful efforts, including the initiative and endeavors of the United Arab Emirates to reach a peaceful solution to the issue of the three islands; Greater Tunb, Lesser Tunb, and Abu Musa, through bilateral negotiations in accordance with the rules of international law, and to resolve this issue in accordance with international legitimacy.” The three islands have been in dispute since the British withdrew from the United Arab Emirates in 1971 when Iran seized the islands and continues to occupy them to the present.

Iran on Saturday (Dec. 10) summoned China’s envoy to Tehran to express its “strong dissatisfaction” at the reference to the islands. In a tweet issued on Monday (Dec. 12), Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian wrote that the islands are “inseparable parts of Iran’s pure soil”, and that Iran will not compromise with any country in asserting its territorial integrity.

Iranian commentator Maysam Bizaer tweeted that the Iranian newspaper the Arman Daily used the headline “Taiwan independence is a legal right” as its front page report on Sunday (Dec. 11). He pointed out that the article starts out by stating that China has always suppressed the right of Taiwanese to independence through “coercive force” and noted that it concluded that “China will have no choice but to accept the demands of the Taiwanese for independence.”

Front page of Arman Daily on Dec.11. (Arman Daily screenshot)

Early in the article, it pointed out that polls show most Taiwanese people are against China’s policy of one country, two systems. It cited a poll as showing that 85.6% of respondents were against former Chinese Chairman Deng Xiaoping’s (???) policy to annex Taiwan, while 77.1% believe that China’s behavior toward Taiwan is unfriendly.

The article then went into detail about Taiwan’s struggles to achieve recognition on the international stage with uneven results such as admission to the World Trade Organization but expulsion from the United Nations. It detailed the path Taiwan will need to follow to regain membership in the U.N. and indicated that Taiwan could follow a path similar to Kosovo, which after declaring independence in 2008 has gained recognition from over half of U.N. member states.

Bizaer also observed that a number of other Iranian newspapers published headlines that were hostile to Beijing, such as Sazandegi publishing “China against Iran,” Etemad writing “What’s China’s plan in Middle East?”, Khorasan printing “The Chinese Shock,” and Hamdeli posting “China’s not-so-friendly message for Iran.”

Sun’s front page of Arman daily’: “Taiwan’s Independence, a Legal Right”

The article begins by saying that China has always suppressed the right of the Taiwanese by “coercive force” &concludes that China will have no choice but to accept the Taiwanese independence.#Iran #China pic.twitter.com/jvIy2SI1dT

— MAYSAM BIZÆR ???? ????? (@m_bizar) December 10, 2022