Recently, two members of the Parliament of North Macedonia, disregarding China's strong opposition and serious representations, visited China's Taiwan region. This is a strong violation of the one-China principle and bilateral political commitments and severely damages the political foundation of China-North Macedonia relations. It also sends an egregiously wrong signal to the "Taiwan independence" separatist forces. We firmly oppose such a visit.

Both the Joint Communiqué on the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations between the People's Republic of China and the Republic of Macedonia signed on 10 December 1993 and the Joint Communiqué Between the People's Republic of China and the Republic of Macedonia on the Normalization of Relations signed on 18 June 2001 clearly wrote that "The Government of the Republic of Macedonia recognizes emphatically that there is but one China in the world, that the Government of the People's Republic of China is the sole legal government representing the whole of China and that Taiwan is an inalienable part of the Chinese territory, and confirms that it shall not enter into official relations in whatever form or to engage in any official exchanges with Taiwan." The visit by the two members of the parliament is completely against the Communiqués mentioned above.

Members of the parliament are far from ordinary citizens; they hold significant political influence and are public officials who should adhere to the one-China principle by which the government of North Macedonia abides. During their visit to Taiwan, the members of parliament used their official title and met with leaders of the Taiwan region, therefore their visit was never a "personal activity" but an event of official essence instead. Visits by members of parliament or even a leader of the parliament to Taiwan, no matter in whatever form or for whatever reason, is a major political provocation in attempting to upgrade official exchanges between North Macedonia and Taiwan. Urging him not to visit Taiwan is to avoid damage to bilateral relations and to remind him to stay true to the international responsibilities shouldered by North Macedonia. However, such an urge has been regarded as "pressurizing" or "threatening" for no reason. We will never accept such claims. Once again, we urge relevant politicians to change course and return to the right path promptly.

There is but one China in the world, and Taiwan is an inalienable part of China's territory. The one-China principle is a universal consensus of the international community and a basic norm in international relations, and acts as the foundation for 183 countries including North Macedonia to establish diplomatic relations with China. China strongly urges relevant politicians to stop supporting and conniving with "Taiwan independence" separatist forces in any form. They should take credible actions to observe strictly the one-China principle and the provisions of the joint communiqués signed by the two countries.