Washington/New Delhi, Jan 6 (IANS) Former US National Security Advisor (NSA) John Bolton on Tuesday slammed China for threatening Taiwan, terming Beijing's actions as the "real threats" to international peace and security.

"I think China has made it clear that they're threatening Taiwan. They have for a long time. The people of Taiwan have repeatedly spoken in free and fair elections. They do not want to rejoin the mainland. They don't consider themselves Chinese anymore, as any number of surveys in Taiwan have proven. It's a free and democratically elected government, and I think the people of Taiwan are entitled to govern themselves. I think these threats by China are real threats to international peace and security," Bolton told IANS in an exclusive interview.

Taiwan continues to face threats from China, which claims the self-ruled island as part of its territory under the 'One China' policy and insists on its reunification with Beijing by force, if necessary. In recent years, China has launched large-scale military drills around Taiwan. Despite China's efforts, Taiwan, backed by strong public support, continues to assert its sovereignty and responds to China's incursions.

Backing the US administration's action of extracting Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, Bolton stated that any Chinese attack on Taiwan cannot be justified for the same reasons.

When asked about capturing leader of a country being against the international order, Bolton responded, "Not if the leader is illegitimate. Not if the leader has committed aggression or other acts that endanger the security and stability of the United States, in this case, the Western Hemisphere. Others may claim that they're doing the same thing, but you have to justify that claim on the basis of fact. It's not a basis just because of what's happened in Venezuela for Russia to invade Ukraine. It's a totally different situation. That was an act of unprovoked aggression. It was hardly invited by anyone in Ukraine and a Chinese attack on Taiwan could not be justified for the same reasons."

--IANS

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