Xi Jinping promises unification of China and Taiwan in year-end speech

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Written by Anders Hagström, FOX News

Chinese leader Xi Jinping pledged to unify Taiwan and mainland China in his year-end speech on Sunday.

Tensions between China and Taiwan remain high, and Taiwanese voters are scheduled to take part in Taiwan’s elections on January 13th. President Xi has repeatedly affirmed China’s position that Taiwan is part of China and must be unified by force if necessary.

“All Chinese people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait should be bound by a common sense of purpose and share the glory of the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation,” Xi said in a speech on Sunday.

This is the second time in recent days that Xi has given a speech on the Taiwan issue. President Xi also vowed to unify Taiwan on Tuesday at a symposium in Beijing commemorating the 130th birthday of Mao Zedong, the founding father of communist China.

“The complete reunification of the motherland is an irresistible trend,” Xi said at the event, adding that China “resolutely prevents anyone from dividing” the two countries.

Meanwhile, residents in Taiwan are preparing to head to the polls. Current opinion polls show that residents support independence-minded candidate Lai Kiyonori.

China opposes any international suggestion of Taiwan’s independence. Xi’s military conducted several weeks of live-fire exercises around the island in 2022, following a visit by then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.).

Taiwan lost a civil war with the Chinese Communist Party in 1949, and democratic forces fled to Taiwan, separating it from mainland China.