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The world’s richest man, Elon Musk, found himself at the center of a dispute related to China and Taiwan just days after his comments about the Russia-Ukraine conflict sparked controversy. The tech billionaire has recently been sharing his views on how to tackle key international issues. The 51-year-old told the Financial Times in an interview published on Friday: “My suggestion … is to have a rather palatable special administrative region for Taiwan that may not please everyone.” Responding to questions about Tesla’s operations in China as he touched on the sensitive issue that Beijing, accused of expansionist policies, has consistently claimed Taiwan is part of its province.
After Musk’s remarks sparked debate, Taiwan’s de facto ambassador to Washington, Xiao Bichen, tweeted Saturday: “Any lasting advice on our future must be decided peacefully, free from coercion, and respecting the democratic will of the Taiwanese people. . . ”
She made the country’s stance clear in a pointed statement: “Taiwan sells many products, but our freedom and democracy are not for sale.”
But Musk received more than criticism. “I would like to thank @elonmusk for his call for peace across the Taiwan Strait and his idea of a Taiwan Special Administrative Region,” Qin Gang, China’s ambassador to the United States, thanked Musk on Twitter.
“In fact, peaceful reunification and one country, two systems are our basic principles for solving the Taiwan issue and the best way to achieve national reunification,” he added. The “one country, two systems” model of autonomy – similar to what Hong Kong has been – has been rejected by Taiwan’s mainstream political parties.
A few days ago, Musk was accused of making light of Russia’s annexation of Ukraine.
“Ukrainian-Russian Peace: Re-election of dependent territories under UN supervision. If it was the will of the people, Russia would leave and Crimea officially became part of Russia, as it has been since 1783 (until Khrushche). husband’s mistake), Crimea’s water supply guaranteed, Ukraine remains neutral,” Musk tweeted, “yes or no” polls.
Unsurprisingly, this sparked a boycott from Kyiv. “Which @elonmusk do you prefer? – One pro-Ukraine, one pro-Russia,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky tweeted.
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