Mr Chen (above) said China would already have 'taken' Taiwan if he had not upheld its sovereignty during the past eight years. -- PHOTO: REUTERS

Mr Chen, who is leaving office after the maximum two terms, said China would already have 'taken' Taiwan if he had not upheld its sovereignty during the past eight years.

He also said the prospect of reunification between China and Taiwan, which split in 1949 after a civil war, was more remote than ever.

Taiwan's March 22 presidential election pits Mr Frank Hsieh, of Mr Chen's ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), against the Kuomintang's Ma Ying-jeo who, according to opinion polls, is expected to win comfortably.

Mr Ma wants much closer ties with China and is seen as more Beijing-friendly than Mr Hsieh, although both have said reunification is not up for discussion.

'Whoever is the national leader of Taiwan, whichever party is in power, China will not acknowledge Taiwan's sovereignty, will continue to suppress Taiwan's international space, and intimidate Taiwan militarily, and pursue an economic United Front tactics against Taiwan,' Mr Chen told the FT.

'You think that when a certain person assumes power, a certain party comes into power, China will change its ambition, intention and preparation to annex Taiwan?

'They have only one goal, and that's to take Taiwan, to extinguish Taiwan, transform Taiwan into a part of the PRC, a local government... If you don't accept unification, then they'll use force against you, that's what it means.'

Mr Chen, who has frequently railed at what he sees as China's intimidation of Taiwan, added that 'if there hadn't been the past eight years of DPP rule and me as president, I believe Taiwan would have been taken by China after six years'.

On the same day as the presidential election, Taiwan will also vote on two referendums on joining the United Nations, one put forward by the DPP and one by the KMT.

Taiwan lost its United Nations seat to China in 1971 and has been blocked by Beijing from returning ever since, with only 23 countries now officially recognising the island diplomatically.

Mr Chen said at least 80 per cent of Taiwanese wanted to rejoin the world body but appeared ready to concede defeat in the referendum, saying the bar of at least 50 per cent participation meant neither proposal might pass.

The president, who ended half a century of KMT dominance when he won power in 2000, said China and Taiwan were growing closer together economically.

'But politically the opposite is true, they are moving farther apart,' he cautioned.

'Therefore the growth of Taiwan consciousness is absolutely no coincidence but a trend. It is the mainstream opinion of Taiwan society. This is something nobody can block.

'But I agree even more with the view that the opportunity of Taiwan and the Chinese mainland merging, unifying, is becoming ever more remote.' -- AFP