Elon Musk suggests making Taiwan 'special administrative zone of China'; receives backlash
Taipei (Taiwan), October 9: Tesla CEO Elon Musk's suggestion that Taiwan could be made a special administrative zone of China has provoked a backlash both from China and the self-governing island.
Musk's comment not only infringes national sovereignty but also harms democracy, Democratic Progressive Party Spokesperson Huang Tsai-lin stated on Saturday, according to Taiwan News.
Meanwhile, China's state-run Central Television News issued an article called, "Musk steps out of line in discussing China's Taiwan issue, Foreign Ministry responds."
According to the article, Spokesperson Mao Ning reacted to a question about Musk's "inappropriate statement" during a routine press conference hosted by the country's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
In her response, Mao stated that "the Taiwan issue is China's domestic politics." She went on to say that China will "resolutely suppress interference by foreign forces," a common expression in Chinese propaganda that appears to relate to Musk in this case, according to Taiwan News.
Furthermore, Huang stated that Musk does not condemn the Chinese Communist Party's (CCP) misconduct, but rather "caters to the threat of the aggressor by sacrificing Taiwan's independence, completely ignoring the limitless ambitions of authoritarian rulers."
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In an interview with the Financial Times titled "Elon Musk: 'Aren't you entertained?'" on Friday (October 7), the world's richest man acknowledged to being a fan of China.
He suggested creating "a reasonably palatable special administrative zone for Taiwan that is more lenient than Hong Kong."
According to Taiwan News, the statement sparked outrage in Taiwan, with leaders from major political parties such as the Democratic Progressive Party, Kuomintang, New Power Party, and Taiwan People's Party issuing statements condemning Musk's remarks.
-PTC News
