December 9, 2003	Tuesday	Shawwal 14, 1424

UNITED NATIONS, Dec 8: Prime Minister of China, Wen Jiabao on Sunday said that Beijing would “never tolerate” separatist forces and their plan to split Taiwan away from China.

He told reporters here following a meeting with the UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, that he believed that the island’s leaders’ plan for a referendum, was a cover to break away from China.

“The Chinese government also understands the aspiration of people in Taiwan for democracy,” Mr Wen said.

“However, the essence of the problem now is that the separatist forces within the Taiwan authorities attempt to use democracy only as a cover to split Taiwan away from China and this is what we will never tolerate,” Mr Wen asserted. He reiterated that peaceful reunification is the best way to settle the question.

Mr Wen Jiabao did not threaten military action, and the UN chief also made it clear that he wanted the issue to be resolved peacefully.

“So long as there is still a glimmer of hope,” Mr Wen said, “the Chinese government will not give up its efforts for peaceful reunification and for a peaceful settlement of the question.”

Mr Wen Jiabao said he appreciated Mr Annan’s reiteration during their 50-minute closed-door meeting of the United Nations’ adherence to “the one-China policy.”

China has also been in the forefront of efforts to arrange a new round of six-party talks on North Korea’s nuclear weapons programmes, and Mr Wen and Mr Annan said that the issue was on their agenda along with Iraq, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and other issues.

Mr Wen said he believes the American and North Korean positions “are getting closer” and he still hopes a new round of talks can take place before the end of the year.

Calling their conversation “very constructive and stimulating,” Mr Annan told reporters that the two leaders had discussed the China-UN relationship, Iraq, the Korean Peninsula and efforts to contain HIV/AIDS. “I had the chance to congratulate the prime minister on the effective way China contained the SARS epidemic,” he said.

Mr Annan affirmed that the two also agreed to continue their cooperation.

“We talked about UN reform, the importance of the UN and its preeminent position in international affairs and the need for us to take measures to strengthen the organization and make it effective and more responsive to the challenges of our time,” he said.

On Monday, Mr Wen rang the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange and visited the site of the World Trade Center. He was to leave for Washington in the late afternoon. Mr Wen is expected to lobby President Bush on the new Taiwan issue when they meet in Washington later this week.