Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao on Friday slashed Taiwan authorities' application for joining the United Nations in the name of Taiwan, saying the attempt will not succeed.

"We resolutely oppose it and will keep a close eye on the development of the issue," Liu said. "The Taiwan authorities' attempt to split China will absolutely not succeed."

According to the Foreign Ministry, Taiwan authorities on Thursday sent a letter to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon, presenting an application for "joining the UN in the name of Taiwan."

Liu said Taiwan authorities' attempt to join the UN is an act of splittism of the "Taiwan independence" forces, which attempts to separate Taiwan from China.

He cited articles of the UN Charter, the provisional rules of procedure of the Security Council and provisional rules of procedure of the UN General Assembly, saying only sovereign states can apply for UN membership.

The general position of the international community is that there is only one China in the world, Taiwan is an integral part of China, and the government of the People's Republic of China is the sole legal government that represents the whole China.

Such a stance also completely accords with the UN Charter and has been confirmed by the UN General Assembly Resolution 2758, Liu said.

(Xinhua News Agency July 21, 2007)