Chinese president Xi Jinping promised to achieve “peaceful reunification” with Taiwan Saturday, capping a week of escalating tensions with the island.
Taiwan, which is democratically ruled, responded that only its citizens could decide its future, and called on China to end its coercion. Taiwan has come under increased military pressure from China to accept its rule.
In a speech at Beijing’s Great Hall of the People, Xi said that the Chinese people have a “glorious tradition” of fighting against separatism.
“Taiwan independence separatism is the biggest obstacle to achieving the reunification of the motherland, and the most serious hidden danger to national rejuvenation,” he said, according to a Reuters report.
A navy soldier adjusts a Taiwan flag onboard ROCS Chang Chien in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, on Oct. 9, 2021. REUTERS/Ann Wang
Chinese President Xi Jinping and other leaders attended a meeting commemorating the 110th anniversary of Xinhai Revolution at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China on Oct. 9, 2021. REUTERS/Carlos Garcia RawlinsThe speech, which was made on the anniversary of the revolution that overthrew the last imperial dynasty in 1911, struck a much milder tone than one in July when Xi vowed to “smash” Taiwan’s attempts at independence.
