The Chinese-American community in the Greater Washington, D.C. metropolitan area has expressed its strong support for the reiteration by the U.S. Department of State of the one-China policy.

"We are pleased to see the quick response from the Administrative branch in rebuke of Chen Shui-bian's recent remarks and we hope you will join us in supporting this one-China policy and oppose so-called Taiwan independence," said the Washington-based National Association for China's Peaceful Unification (NACU) in a public letter to the U.S. Congress on Thursday.

Chen has repeatedly challenged the one-China policy in his recent remarks, which has once again demonstrated he is indeed a troublemaker and is intent on sabotaging cross-Straits relations and peace and stability in Asia, the letter said.

Chen has made a series of "Taiwan independence" remarks since New Year's Day, such as those about abolishing the "National Unification Council (NUC)" and the "National Unification Guidelines" and "applying for United Nations membership under the name of Taiwan," which are very provocative and fully reveal his "Taiwan independence" position.

The letter also said Chen is defying the common recognition by people across the Taiwan Straits that Taiwan and China's mainland belong to the one and same China, adding that he has "reneged on his own promises to the people of Taiwan."

On May. 20, 2000, Chen promised not to declare Taiwan independence, not to incorporate the "two states" idea into its constitution, not to change the so-called country's name or to hold a referendum on Taiwan independence, and not to abolish the "NUC" and the "National Unification Guidelines."

In the letter, the NACU urged the U.S. lawmakers to join hands with the Chinese-American community in stopping Chen's calculations of provoking China and causing unnecessary tensions between the United States and China.

"In the past year, China's mainland took many significant steps to improve relations across the Taiwan Straits."

The improved relations have proven to be greatly beneficial to the people on both sides of the Taiwan Straits, the letter said.

The United States and China have overlapping interests in such areas as fighting terrorism, preventing the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, building energy security and reducing the risks of pandemic disease, the letter said.

"We can not let Chen Shui-bian single-handedly sabotage this peace and stability and the close relationship between the United States and China," the letter added.

Source: Xinhua