BEIJING -- A Chinese mainland spokesperson on Wednesday urged the United States to handle the Taiwan question with the utmost prudence.

At a regular press conference, Zhu Fenglian, spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, reiterated that the Taiwan question remains at the very core of China's core interests and is the foremost red line that must not be crossed in China-US relations.

She urged the US side to strictly abide by the one-China principle and the provisions of the three China-US joint communiques, to stop sending the wrong signals to separatist forces, and to prevent a small handful of separatists from undermining the broader China-US relationship.

Zhu also criticized Democratic Progressive Party authorities in Taiwan and separatist forces for clinging to "Taiwan independence" positions and colluding with external actors in provocative attempts to seek independence.

"These are the root causes of tensions and instability across the Taiwan Strait," she said.