Taipei, July 30 (CNA) Taiwan is not a renegade province as described by mainland China, and the two sides of the Taiwan Strait should resolve their disputes on an equal and reciprocal basis, President Lee Teng-hui told the foreign minister of Gambia on Friday.
The Republic of China stands firm on its stance that Taiwan and mainland China should co-exist peacefully and that both sides should face this reality in a practical and rational manner, Lee told Momodou Lamin Sedat Jobe.
Thanking Jobe for the support the Gambia government and people have extended to the ROC in the international community, Lee said that as head of state of the ROC, he had the responsibility to make his country's status clear when questioned on the issue by the Deutche Welle Radio Station in a July 9 interview.
"As it is an issue regarding the nation's dignity, it is of paramount importance to clarify the matter from a legal and historical standpoint," Lee noted, stressing that Taiwan is neither a renegade province of the mainland, nor is the cross-strait relationship that of a "boss and worker."
Lee termed the ties between Taiwan and mainland China "a special state-to-state relationship" in the interview, eliciting a furious response from Beijing.
Turning to Beijing's "one China" principle, Lee noted that this framework has squeezed the ROC's presence in the international community, putting Taiwan at a disadvantage.
In light of a planned autumn visit to Taiwan by Wang Daohan, the mainland's top negotiator with the island, Lee reiterated that it is vital for him to point out the existing reality between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait in order to help Taiwan conduct negotiations with the mainland on an equal footing.
For his part, Jobe said he totally agreed with this view, and hailed the ROC's democratic and economic achievements as a model for developing African countries.
He pledged that his government will continue to support the ROC in the international community, and help to allow its voice to be heard on the world stage.