High school students sing a song composed for the 50th anniversary of the A-bombing in 1995, "Senbazuru (A Thousand Paper Cranes)" during a Nagasaki Peace Ceremony to commemorate the 81st anniversary of the atomic bombing at the Peace Park in Nagasaki on August 9, 2026. Photo: VCG

When asked to comment on claims by Taiwan island's "representative to Japan" that Taiwan's so-called "national dignity" and status have been deliberately downgraded, which is regrettable and disappointing, a spokesperson of Chinese Embassy in Japan said on Monday that Taiwan is not a country, and there is no such thing as "national dignity." Overreaching itself in seeking attention everywhere will only bring humiliation upon itself, the spokesperson said.

There is only one China in the world, and Taiwan is an inalienable part of China's territory. The Government of the People's Republic of China is the sole legal government representing the whole of China. This is the basic consensus of the international community, per the embassy.

According to Japanese media outlet the Sankei Shimbun's report on Sunday, the island's "representative to Japan" Lee I-yang announced on Sunday that he would not attend Nagasaki City's Peace Memorial Ceremony, citing that the city had failed to provide "appropriate treatment" in its seating arrangements.

A later statement by the island's authorities claimed that despite requests made through lawmakers and others, Nagasaki city had "deliberately placed" the Taiwan delegation's seats "outside the diplomatic representatives' area."

"Here is a small piece of knowledge: the official designation used by the UN for Taiwan is 'Taiwan, Province of China,'" the embassy spokesperson noted on Monday in the statement.

Global Times