Does China really believe it can achieve peaceful reunification with Taiwan?
Chinese President Xi Jinping on Saturday said reunification with Taiwan must happen, though he appeared to strike a more conciliatory tone on the matter than he has in other recent remarks. He did not directly mention using force to bring the island, which China claims as its territory, into Beijing's fold, instead saying that it should happen peacefully.
But it's unclear just how committed Xi is to that rhetoric. Some China watchers are still convinced that Beijing would be willing to launch a military operation in the coming years, and the government has been pouring money into the People's Liberation Army. "Even moderate voices in Beijing have been calling for tossing out peaceful reunification," Oriana Skylar Mastro, a fellow at Stanford University's Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, told The New York Times. "I think the military option is the option now."
Plus, while Xi avoided making any threats this time around, he did add that "no one should underestimate the Chinese people's staunch determination, firm will, and strong ability to defend national sovereignty and territorial integrity" and called Taiwan's independence movement the biggest obstacle to achieving the reunification of the motherland, and the most serious hidden danger to national rejuvenation." That likely will have a lot of folks reading between the lines. Read more at The New York Times and Reuters.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
-
When will mortgage rates finally start coming down?
The Explainer Much to potential homebuyers' chagrin, mortgage rates are still elevated
By Becca Stanek, The Week US Published
-
Women are getting their own baseball league again
In the Spotlight The league is on track to debut in 2026
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
Giant TVs are becoming the next big retail commodity
Under the Radar Some manufacturers are introducing TVs over 8 feet long
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
Despairing husband creates 'Taylor Swift jar'
Tall Tales And other stories from the stranger side of life
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
Urine video dents Chinese beer brand
Tall Tales And other stories from the stranger side of life
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
Nobody seems surprised Wagner's Prigozhin died under suspicious circumstances
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
Western mountain climbers allegedly left Pakistani porter to die on K2
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
'Circular saw blades' divide controversial Rio Grande buoys installed by Texas governor
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
Los Angeles city workers stage 1-day walkout over labor conditions
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
Mega Millions jackpot climbs to an estimated $1.55 billion
Speed Read
By Catherine Garcia Published
-
Bangladesh dealing with worst dengue fever outbreak on record
Speed Read
By Catherine Garcia Published