A sharp diplomatic dispute erupted Wednesday between Israel and China after a delegation of Israeli lawmakers visited Taiwan and met with President Lai Ching-te.
The delegation included Knesset members Mickey Levy, Boaz Toporovsky, Ron Katz and Yonatan Mishraki. The lawmakers met with senior Taiwanese officials during a visit focused on cooperation in technology and national resilience.
Lai wrote on X that he was pleased to meet the delegation led by former Knesset speaker Levy and discuss cooperation between Taiwan and Israel in artificial intelligence, social resilience and other fields. He thanked the Knesset for supporting deeper ties and industrial development.
Taiwanese Deputy Foreign Minister Wu Chih-chung also met with the lawmakers, saying the visit, amid the security situation in the Middle East, reflected meaningful support for Taiwan. He said the two countries face similar challenges from authoritarian regimes and should deepen cooperation.
China’s Embassy in Israel issued a sharp condemnation, accusing the lawmakers, particularly Toporovsky, of violating the one-China principle.
“There is only one China in the world, and Taiwan is an inseparable part of China’s territory,” the embassy said. It said the People’s Republic of China is the sole legitimate government representing all of China and that the one-China principle is a basic norm in international relations.
The embassy said Israel’s 1992 joint communique establishing diplomatic relations with China recognized Beijing as the sole legal government representing China and Taiwan as an integral part of Chinese territory.
The embassy accused the Israeli lawmakers of repeatedly violating Israel’s one-China policy and “cooperating with separatist forces” supporting Taiwan independence.
“We call on the relevant Knesset members to immediately stop their wrong words and actions,” the embassy said, warning them not to underestimate China’s determination to defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity.