Taiwan’s opposition leader met Friday with Chinese President Xi Jinping at Beijing’s Great Hall of the People, the first such encounter in over a decade, with both sides affirming the need for maintaining peace around the self-ruled island that China claims as its territory.
Both Xi and Cheng Li-wun, the head of the Beijing-friendly Kuomingtang Party, reiterated they wanted to move toward a peaceful reunification of Taiwan and the mainland, though it remains unclear how they would achieve it. China hasn’t ruled out the use of force and has stepped up its military exercises around Taiwan, sending warships and fighter jets closer toward the island and steadily poaching Taiwan’s few remaining diplomatic allies.
Xi welcomed Cheng and her party’s representatives in the Great Hall of the People, where he usually meets world leaders, to a round of applause from both sides. “The larger trend of compatriots on both sides of the strait walking nearer, closer, and together will not change. This is a historical necessity. We have full confidence in this,” he said.
“Although people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait live under different systems, we will respect each other and move towards each other,” Cheng said, adding: “We will seek systemic solutions to prevent and avoid war.”
This is just the reality on the ground. Neither party wants war. The PRC reserves the right to millitant reunification, but is currently working towards peaceful reunification and simply waiting it out, until Taiwan wants it. The PRC has the luxury of time, here, as the PRC continues to rise economically and the US Empire continues to fall, it will only make more and more sense for Taiwan to want to further integrate with the mainland economically. Until then, the people of Taiwan want the status quo, and the PRC is fine to wait it out and continue to push for dialogue.
First off it’s the opposition leader, not the president, who is vocal about Taiwan remaining sovereign. Second, if I threaten someone with annihilation, and they say “hey we can negotiate peacefully,” and I say sure I’ll negotiate but (in that article) “war is not off the table,” I as the person threatening them with annihilation am not being peaceful here.
Taiwan is governed by the remnants of the former Chinese government, back when they were nationalists. Chiang Kai-Shek and his group fled to Taiwan, murdered the local opposition, and claimed they were still the legitimate government of all of China. The question isn’t if Taiwan is a part of China, but which government is legitimate.
Over time, this has been complicated by the US Empire using Taiwan as a forward operating base. Some want a clean break, some want further integration, but now the majority want the status quo. What is deeply unpopular is war. Taiwan does not want to become Ukraine 2, they do not want the US Empire to provoke a hot war just to damage China at the expense of Taiwanese people.
The CPC in all of this knows that the US Empire is failing, and that Taiwan will be increasingly pressured economically towards reintegration. All they need to do is wait, and they get what they want without firing a shot.
None of this is false but that doesn’t mean China isn’t threatening military action and waiting for their chance to strike. Being peaceful with the threat of force is not the same as just being peaceful, if a mobster says “pay me off if you don’t want any trouble” they’re not peacefully negotiating. To be honest I’m surprised they haven’t taken more action against Taiwan, when trump would probably say “it’s their country, it’s their territory, its rightfully theirs.”
The president of Taiwan was elected with a minority of votes because the two opposition parties that support closer relations with the PRC could not agree on a joint candidate to run. In the Taiwanese legislature the KMT actually holds more seats than the president’s party.
Also the PRC is not threatening Taiwan with annihilation. That’s just absurd. The PRC’s position is that it doesn’t want foreign countries interfering in Chinese political matters. If you didn’t know already, the US intervened in the Chinese civil war in order to defend a fascist dictator and has continued to give the RoC military support ever since. The PRC keeps the military option open as a deterrent against further US intervention not because it’s planning to invade.
Annihilation is maybe the wrong word, but they risk an unwinnable war against the highest population country. They have 0 chance if China decides to strike, and China is likely kept at bay from other countries “interference.” China doesn’t want to destroy Taiwan, it just wants them to rejoin, and will threaten war if they do not comply.
as the PRC continues to rise economically and the US Empire continues to fall, it will only make more and more sense for Taiwan to want to further integrate with the mainland economically.
Cowbee@lemmy.ml 3 weeks ago
From the [Associated Press]:(apnews.com/…/china-taiwan-cheng-xi-9735f829b2d9d6…)
This is just the reality on the ground. Neither party wants war. The PRC reserves the right to millitant reunification, but is currently working towards peaceful reunification and simply waiting it out, until Taiwan wants it. The PRC has the luxury of time, here, as the PRC continues to rise economically and the US Empire continues to fall, it will only make more and more sense for Taiwan to want to further integrate with the mainland economically. Until then, the people of Taiwan want the status quo, and the PRC is fine to wait it out and continue to push for dialogue.
starelfsc2@sh.itjust.works 3 weeks ago
First off it’s the opposition leader, not the president, who is vocal about Taiwan remaining sovereign. Second, if I threaten someone with annihilation, and they say “hey we can negotiate peacefully,” and I say sure I’ll negotiate but (in that article) “war is not off the table,” I as the person threatening them with annihilation am not being peaceful here.
Cowbee@lemmy.ml 3 weeks ago
Taiwan is governed by the remnants of the former Chinese government, back when they were nationalists. Chiang Kai-Shek and his group fled to Taiwan, murdered the local opposition, and claimed they were still the legitimate government of all of China. The question isn’t if Taiwan is a part of China, but which government is legitimate.
Over time, this has been complicated by the US Empire using Taiwan as a forward operating base. Some want a clean break, some want further integration, but now the majority want the status quo. What is deeply unpopular is war. Taiwan does not want to become Ukraine 2, they do not want the US Empire to provoke a hot war just to damage China at the expense of Taiwanese people.
The CPC in all of this knows that the US Empire is failing, and that Taiwan will be increasingly pressured economically towards reintegration. All they need to do is wait, and they get what they want without firing a shot.
starelfsc2@sh.itjust.works 3 weeks ago
None of this is false but that doesn’t mean China isn’t threatening military action and waiting for their chance to strike. Being peaceful with the threat of force is not the same as just being peaceful, if a mobster says “pay me off if you don’t want any trouble” they’re not peacefully negotiating. To be honest I’m surprised they haven’t taken more action against Taiwan, when trump would probably say “it’s their country, it’s their territory, its rightfully theirs.”
cecinestpasunbot@lemmy.ml 3 weeks ago
The president of Taiwan was elected with a minority of votes because the two opposition parties that support closer relations with the PRC could not agree on a joint candidate to run. In the Taiwanese legislature the KMT actually holds more seats than the president’s party.
Also the PRC is not threatening Taiwan with annihilation. That’s just absurd. The PRC’s position is that it doesn’t want foreign countries interfering in Chinese political matters. If you didn’t know already, the US intervened in the Chinese civil war in order to defend a fascist dictator and has continued to give the RoC military support ever since. The PRC keeps the military option open as a deterrent against further US intervention not because it’s planning to invade.
starelfsc2@sh.itjust.works 3 weeks ago
China has literally stated “we want to merge peacefully but war is not off the table.” Taiwan has said “we want to maintain the status quo.” business-standard.com/…/over-80-of-taiwanese-favo…
Annihilation is maybe the wrong word, but they risk an unwinnable war against the highest population country. They have 0 chance if China decides to strike, and China is likely kept at bay from other countries “interference.” China doesn’t want to destroy Taiwan, it just wants them to rejoin, and will threaten war if they do not comply.
0x0@lemmy.zip 3 weeks ago
Taiwan has TSMC, they don’t need China.
Cowbee@lemmy.ml 3 weeks ago
You can’t pin your entire economy on a single company in a single sector, especially when your performance isn’t certified forever.