TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan’s Presidential Office on Sunday criticized China’s expulsion of Beijing-based New York Times correspondent Vivian Wang in February.
Chinese officials said the decision was made after President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) was interviewed by videoconference at the New York Times DealBook Summit in December, according to the New York Times. Wang was not involved in the event.
Presidential Office Spokesperson Karen Guo (郭雅慧) said in a statement that China’s harsh tactics to pressure media and interfere with press freedom “fail to improve its international image” and reinforce the fact that it is “a source of instability and a troublemaker in the region and the international community.”
Guo said the government is following the incident and working with like-minded countries “to ensure the safety of international media workers and journalists.”
In response to Wang’s removal, the US decided Friday to remove a Chinese state media worker employed by Xinhua, an official Chinese government mouthpiece.
When asked about the media row, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said Monday the New York Times helped promote “Taiwan independence separatist fallacies,” which violated the “one China” principle.
Lin accused Wang of “deceptive reporting practices” and said China acted in accordance with the law. He said the row stemmed from “the US unilaterally creating problems and politicizing media issues.”
The spokesperson added that China has “consistently provided convenience for foreign journalists to report and live in China.”
Nicole Taylor, a New York Times spokesperson, said Monday that Wang was “one of the most distinguished and respected journalists covering China,” per the New York Times. She added that the newspaper is “committed to probing, accurate, and independent reporting about Taiwan” and urged the US and China to improve access for journalists.
