「中国料理店があるから台湾は中国」　報道官ツイートに失笑の嵐

【北京ＡＦＰ＝時事】中国外務省の華春瑩報道官が７日夜、台北に中国料理店が多数あることを根拠に台湾の領有権を主張する投稿をツイッターに行い、失笑を買っている。（写真は中国・北京で記者会見する外務省の華春瑩報道官）
　華報道官は「百度（バイドゥ）の地図によれば、台北には山東餃子（ギョーザ）の店が３８店舗、山西麺の店が６７店舗ある。舌はごまかせない。台湾は常に中国の一部だ。長く道に迷っていた子どもも、やがては家に帰る」とツイートした。
　だがネット上では、華氏の論理の穴への指摘が相次いだ。あるツイッターユーザーは、「台北にはラーメン店が１００店舗以上ある。つまり、台湾は間違いなく日本の一部だということになる」と書き込んだ。
　「グーグルマップによれば、北京にはマクドナルドが１７店舗、ケンタッキーフライドチキンが１８店舗、バーガーキングが１９店舗、スターバックスが１９店舗ある。舌はごまかせない。中国は常に米国の一部だ」と元のツイートをもじった投稿もあった。
　さらに、華氏の論理なら、中国がアジア太平洋を越えた各地で領有権の主張ができるのではないかと冗談半分に指摘する声も出た。
　ある人は、「ロサンゼルス大都市圏には餃子店が２９店舗、麺類の店が８９店舗ある。華氏の論理に基づけば、ロサンゼルスは常に中国の一部だ」と投稿した。【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】
〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2022/08/08-22:36）

A senior Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman has prompted a storm of ridicule online, after a late-night tweet where she used restaurant listings to assert Beijing's claim over Taiwan.
Baidu Maps show that there are 38 Shandong dumpling restaurants and 67 Shanxi noodle restaurants in Taipei, spokeswoman Hua Chunying posted on the social media site late on Sunday.
Palates don't cheat. #Taiwan has always been a part of China. The long lost child will eventually return home, she added.
Hua's tweet comes at the end of a week of tensions around the Taiwan Strait, during which Beijing raged at a trip by US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to the island, which China considers part of its territory.
The Chinese government has responded to Pelosi's trip by cancelling a series of talks and cooperation agreements with Washington, as well as deploying fighter jets, warships and ballistic missiles around democratic, self-ruled Taiwan.
Hua's tweet on Sunday appeared to backfire, as thousands of users on Twitter -- a site banned in China and only accessible via special VPN software -- piled on to poke holes in the top official's logic.
There are over 100 ramen restaurants in Taipei, so Taiwan is definitely a part of Japan, a Twitter user with the handle Marco Chu wrote in Hua's replies.
Google Maps show that there are 17 McDonalds, 18 KFCs, 19 Burger Kings, and 19 Starbucks in Beijing. Palates don't cheat. #China has always been a part of America. The long lost child will eventually return home, Twitter user @plasticreceiver wrote in a parody of Hua's tweet.
Others wondered jokingly if Hua's logic meant Beijing could place claims on territories far beyond the Asia Pacific region.
There are 29 dumpling houses in the Greater Los Angeles area not to mention 89 noodle restaurants, a person tweeting under the name Terry Adams wrote.
Using Hua's logic, LA has always been a part of China.
Sunday's tweet is far from the first time Beijing's diplomats have raised eyebrows with their use of social media that their own government prohibits.
Foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian has frequently promoted conspiracy theories on Twitter, including the idea that the US military might have brought Covid-19 to China.