Taiwan ‘at core of core issues’ for Beijing, says Chinese defence minister

‘The resolution of Taiwan is a matter for the Chinese people’

Chinese defence minister Wei Fenghe told his American counterpart Lloyd Austin on Tuesday that Taiwan is "at the core" of China's core interest and a "red-line" the US should not cross.

"The resolution of Taiwan is a matter for the Chinese people, no external force has the right to interfere," Mr Wei said.

The meeting between the two defence chiefs, which lasted for nearly 90 minutes, took place on the sidelines of the gathering of Southeast Asian defence ministers in Cambodia.