Taipei, Feb. 10 (CNA) Vice President Annette Lu said Monday that mainland China poses a long-term potential threat to the world as it has continued its military build-up and refused to renounce the option of using force against Taiwan.
Lu made the remarks while meeting with William Byrnes, vice chairman of the U.S.-based Fidelity Investment Co.
Lu said she thinks that many people around the world feel uneasy at the moment with the specter of a U.S.-led war against Iraq looming large. A war in Iraq will certainly have a global impact, she noted.
As a matter of fact, Lu said, the world faces other problems, including North Korea's nuclear arms development and mainland China's military threat to Taiwan.
For years, Lu said, mainland China has cultivated an image of helping maintain world peace. "But the reality is that it has covertly created many problems that threaten world peace, " she observed.
For one thing, Lu said, its deployment of missiles has posed a serious threat to the 23 million people of Taiwan. Worse still, she said, the vast mainland market could also exert enormous pressure on Taiwan. "The mainland China-bound investment craze, for instance, has affected the island's job market," she added.
For his part, Byrnes said his company is optimistic about Taiwan's business environment and development prospects. Fidelity has maintained a branch in Taiwan since 1984.