China's curatorial team has announced its withdrawal from the Gwangju Biennale in South Korea after organizers allowed the Taiwan region of China to participate under a name inconsistent with its status, the Chinese Embassy in South Korea said in a statement on Thursday.

The embassy and the Chinese Consulate General in Gwangju held multiple rounds of communication with the Gwangju Metropolitan City government and the Gwangju Biennale Foundation regarding Taiwan-related issues, the statement said. China actively participated in the biennale and supported its success while stressing that the organizers should adhere to South Korea's China policy as well as international law and practices.

"There is only one China in the world, and Taiwan is an inalienable part of China's territory. Taiwan's only designation in the United Nations is 'Taiwan, Province of China.' The participation of China's Taiwan region in multilateral activities must be handled in accordance with the one-China principle," the statement said.

However, the biennale organizers stubbornly adhered to wrong practices and openly agreed to allow China's Taiwan region to participate under a name that is completely inconsistent with its status, seriously violating the one-China principle and directly undermining the political foundation of China-South Korea relations. China firmly opposes this and will never accept it, the statement said, adding that the Chinese curatorial team had announced its withdrawal in strong protest.

The statement noted that China-South Korea relations have returned to the right track of improvement and development since last year, a development that serves the fundamental interests of both sides and should be cherished. It acknowledged that the Gwangju city government has publicly apologized for the wrong Taiwan-related designation and reaffirmed its commitment to the one-China principle, and that the South Korean government has recently reiterated on multiple occasions that its one-China position remains unchanged.

"Regrettably, a very small number of South Korean politicians and social groups, for their own selfish interests, have challenged China's red line on Taiwan-related issues, hurt the feelings of the Chinese people, and disrupted the improvement and development of China-South Korea relations," the statement said. "The Taiwan authorities have tried every means to seek a breakthrough in the South Korea and colluded with political forces behind the scenes."

"China's determination to safeguard its core interests and oppose 'Taiwan independence' separatist forces is unwavering. No person or force attempting to play the 'Taiwan card' to disrupt China-South Korea relations will succeed," it said.

The embassy strongly urged the biennale organizers and the Gwangju city government to immediately correct their mistakes and avoid a serious negative impact on the biennale's reputation and China-South Korea relations. "China reserves the right to safeguard its own interests," it added.