In a gross interference in China's internal affairs, the US House of Representatives on Tuesday voted to adopt a resolution arrogantly recognizing the so-called "30th anniversary of the Taiwan Relations Act".

The Taiwan Relations Act, passed by the US Congress in 1979, required the United States "to provide Taiwan with arms of a defensive character." China has never recognized the legitimacy of the act.

On Feb. 25, two days after the so-called Resolution 55, named Recognizing the 30th anniversary of the Taiwan Relations Act, was referred to the House Committee on Foreign Affairs of the US Congress by 17 representatives, China voiced strong dissatisfaction and lodged solemn representations to the United States over the issue.

"A handful of representatives from the US Congress" had proposed the resolution "despite China's clear opposition", said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu in a press release dated Feb. 25.

It is known to all that the "so-called" Taiwan Relations Act, enacted unilaterally by the United States, had gravely violated the basic norms guiding international relations, said Ma. It also violated the United States' serious commitment to China and intervened in China's internal affairs, he added.

"The Chinese government and people opposed the act strongly from the day it was worked out," he stressed.

It is widely recognized by the international community that Taiwan, an island province separated from the mainland as a result of the Chinese civil war in the late 1940s, is an integral part of China.

(Xinhua News Agency March 25, 2009)