The speech made on Monday by Lai Ching-te, the new leader of China's Taiwan region, is full of hostility and provocation and made up of lies and deception, and is a complete confession of support for "Taiwan independence", a spokesman for the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office said on Tuesday night.

Chen Binhua, the spokesman, said that Lai is inciting anti-mainland sentiment and attempting to "pursue independence through military means", which will only push Taiwan into a perilous situation of war and conflict, bringing great calamity to the vast majority of Taiwan compatriots.

"Lai's speech clearly demonstrated that he is a betrayer of mainstream public opinion on the island and a disruptor of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait," Chen said.

The speech was about peddling the "two-state" concept and pushing for "Taiwan independence" under a different name, reflecting that Lai was eager to reveal his true "Taiwan independence" intentions with an extremely arrogant attitude and even more radical propositions from the outset, Chen said.

The true status quo of the Taiwan Strait is that the Chinese mainland and Taiwan both belong to one China, and Taiwan is a part of China, Chen said. Taiwan's leader not only failed to address the fundamental question of the nature of cross-Strait relations, but also attempted to change the nature of the relations, which poses a grave challenge to the one-China principle, he said.

Lai promoted the idea of "self-determination for Taiwan's residents regarding the island's future" as a guise for the ambition of "Taiwan independence", said the spokesman, adding that the future of Taiwan, as an inseparable part of China, can only be decided by the more than 1.4 billion Chinese people, including compatriots in Taiwan.

Chen noted that the Taiwan question is purely an internal affair of China, and no external interference will be tolerated.

No matter how much Taiwan's leader fawns over and seeks aid from external forces, he is merely a "pawn", and "Taiwan independence" is a dead end, Chen said, adding that the attempt to "seek independence with the support of foreign powers" will only lead to self-destruction.

Chen reaffirmed the strong desire of compatriots on both sides of the Taiwan Strait to achieve national reunification through peaceful means, and highlighted that countermeasures must be taken against the Democratic Progressive Party authorities' collusion with external forces in their provocative "independence" attempts.

Chen also revealed Lai's attempt to use the guise of "peaceful coexistence" and the empty talk about "replacing confrontation with dialogue, and replacing encirclement with exchanges" to suggest the resumption of tourism exchanges and the enrollment of degree-seeking students from the mainland. This ultimately aims to mislead some uninformed individuals into thinking he has the goodwill and sincerity to improve cross-Strait relations.

The inability of mainland residents and students to travel to and study in Taiwan is entirely caused by the DPP authorities, Chen said. Taiwan's leader not only fails to correct past mistakes but also adds the precondition of "bilateral reciprocity" to tourism and study, showing no genuine intent to promote cross-Strait exchanges and improve the island's economy and livelihood.

"No matter what Lai says or how he says it, it cannot change the fact that Taiwan is a part of China, nor can it alter the fundamental framework and direction of cross-Strait relations," Chen said. "It cannot alter the shared desire of people on both sides of the Strait to become closer and more connected, and it cannot stop the irreversible trend of China's reunification."