Foreign Minister Li
Zhaoxing reaffirmed in Beijing yesterday that China will not
use nuclear weapons first at any time or under any conditions.
China has consistently observed this commitment since its first
nuclear test in 1964 and such a stance "will not be changed in the
future," he told academics from China, the US and Japan at an
informal symposium on relations between the three countries.
Referring to last week's remarks by Zhu Chenghu, a dean at
China's National Defense University, Li said they had not
represented the stance of the government, but only his own personal
viewpoint.
Li also reaffirmed the government's stance on the Taiwan issue,
stressing its adherence to the principle of "peaceful
reunification, and one country, two systems" to resolve the
situation.
China, however, will never allow anyone or any force to separate
Taiwan from China by any means, he said.
The international symposium was sponsored by Peking University and
the Brookings Institution, a Washington-based think tank.
(Xinhua News Agency July 22, 2005)