Chinese President Xi Jinping’s much-awaited New Year’s speech came as threat for Taiwan, with the leader saying that “no one can stop China’s “reunification” with Taiwan.
Xi’s words came as a clear warning for Taiwan, the island sheltering 23 million people, that Beijing regards as pro-independence forces within and outside of Taiwan.
For long, Beijing has maintained that the entire nation of democratically-governed Taiwan is a part of China and has also been showing muscular posturing by sending warships and planes almost daily into the waters and air space around the island.
Meanwhile, Taiwan’s government rejects China’s claims and says only its people can decide their future and Beijing ought to respect the choice of the Taiwanese people.
In his televised speech, Xi said, “The people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait are one family. No one can sever our family bonds, and no one can stop the historical trend of national reunification,” Xi said in a speech televised on China’s state broadcaster CCTV.
In his New Year’s speech last year, Xi said China’s “reunification” with Taiwan is inevitable, and that people on both sides “should be bound by a common sense of purpose and share in the glory of the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.”
Xi’s remarks came barely three weeks ahead of US President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration on January 20.
Taiwan is considered to a key point of contention between China and the US.
Taiwan is America’s strategic ally in Asia and Washington is also Taipei’s largest supplier of weapons.
Meanwhile, China has regularly warned the US against any military ties with Taiwan, and slapped sanctions on military suppliers and their executives.
Tensions remained high throughout 2024 in the sensitive Taiwan Strait, which separated Taiwan and China, especially after Lai Ching-te, deemed a “separatist” by Beijing, became the President of the island nation in May last year.
In December, China staged a large massing of naval forces around Taiwan and in the East and South China Seas after Lai stopped over in Hawaii and the US territory of Guam on a Pacific trip criticised by Beijing.
With inputs from agencies.