BEIJING, May 21. /TASS/. Beijing has protested to Seoul and Tokyo over the visit of South Korean and Japanese lawmakers to the inauguration ceremony of Taiwan's leader Lai Ching-te in Taipei.

The Chinese embassy in Seoul said the South Korean delegation’s visit to Taiwan "grossly violates the 'one China' principle and the spirit of the communique on the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and South Korea." "We call on the Republic of Korea to abide by the 'one China' principle, refrain from any interference in China's internal affairs, from supporting separatist forces favoring Taiwan's independence, and take practical steps to protect the common interests of China and South Korea," the statement reads.

"Japan has long colonized Taiwan and bears serious historical responsibility for the Taiwan issue. It should be more careful in what it says and does," the Chinese embassy in Tokyo said, commenting on the visit of more than 30 lawmakers to Taipei. The diplomatic mission pointed out that the Japanese government and "some politicians" in Tokyo had ignored China's strong protest and sent a completely wrong message to the Taiwan administration, thus violating its commitments on the Taiwan issue.

On January 13, the island held the elections of its chief executive and members of the Legislative Yuan (parliament). Lai Ching-te, 64, the island’s deputy chief executive, won with 40.05% of the votes cast. His partner in the race, Hsiao Bi-khim, who took over as the island’s deputy chief executive. The inauguration ceremony was held on May 20.