"There is absolutely no provocative policy but only a policy that respects public opinions ... It is not Taiwan that is acting provocative today, it is China," Chen said.

"Taiwan is not a part of China or a province of the People's Republic of China. But China has adopted the 'anti-secession law' to provide a legal basis to use force against Taiwan and it currently targets Taiwan with more than 988 missiles," he added.

The two sides split after a civil war in 1949 but China still regards the island as a part of its territory and in 2005 passed an anti-secession law which provided the legal framework for retaking Taiwan by force.

Rice on Friday called Taiwan's referendum on seeking UN membership a "provocative policy" in the latest criticism on the move from the international community.

"It unnecessarily raises tensions in the Taiwan Strait and it comes with no real benefits for the people of Taiwan on the international stage. That is why we oppose this referendum," Rice said in Washington at a year-end press conference.

Chen's ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) is pushing for the controversial vote to be held alongside the March 22 presidential elections, despite opposition at home and abroad.

DPP presidential hopeful Frank Hsieh stressed that the party could not put a stop to the vote despite the opposition as it was endorsed by more than two million Taiwanese people.

"A great task is usually very difficult to accomplish and this is a test of the endurance and faith of the Taiwanese people," Hsieh said.

Meanwhile, opposition presidential candidate Ma Ying-jeou expressed concern for US-Taiwan ties if the DPP government persists with the vote.

"The US has repeatedly voiced its concerns over the DPP's referendum plan ... Taiwan-US ties are faced with a huge impact which we cannot afford to underestimate," said Ma of the main opposition Kuomintang.

"If the US deems Taiwan provocative, if would be negative in terms of (maintaining) Taiwan's security in the future," he warned.

Washington is Taiwan's leading arms supplier, despite its switch of diplomatic recognition from Taipei to Beijing in 1979.

Taiwan, under its official name the Republic of China, lost its UN seat to China in 1971 and is now only recognised diplomatically by 24 countries.

Its latest attempt to join the UN -- for the first time under the name Taiwan -- was blocked by China in September.

Its efforts in the past 14 years to rejoin the world body using its official name have also been repeatedly shot down by Beijing, a permanent member of the UN Security Council.

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