Beijing plans to intensify its unification campaign, a Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) official said yesterday in an assessment of statements by Chinese leaders, while stressing the importance of consensus among Taiwanese.
At a conference on Chinese development and security prospects in the Taiwan Strait, MAC Deputy Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) noted key developments in Chinese Communist Party (CCP) rhetoric.
Much attention has been given to the sixth plenum of the CCP Central Committee, which on Nov. 11 issued the party’s third-ever “historical resolution,” paving the way for Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) to retain power through next year’s leadership reshuffle, Chiu said.
Photo courtesy of the Mainland Affairs Council
According to Chiu’s assessment, the CPP’s ideological fixation on one leader is bound to limit its economic development.
The resolution gives an ideologically “correct” view of 100 years of party history, omitting past mistakes, he said.
Xi maintains the view that recent Chinese history is defined by two periods — before and after reform, and opening up — neither of which can be denied, Chiu said.
The CCP believes its sovereignty would be shaken if its legitimacy is questioned, requiring the consolidation of social and political ideology around one leader, he said.
Under incessant party intervention, space for economic and private activity would inevitably continue to shrink, he added.
At the same time, the CCP is becoming increasingly aggressive toward other countries, Chiu said.
Its leaders have made clear that their “Chinese dream” is of a strong military, aiming to modernize its armed forces by the party’s centenary in 2027, he said.
Meanwhile, the Chinese military has been unabashedly ramping up activity in the Taiwan Strait and nearby seas, he added.
In terms of diplomacy, it has been equally intractable, flaunting global norms through its “wolf warrior” diplomacy and hypernationalism, he said.
Regarding Taiwan’s response, Chiu stressed that working with like-minded nations is “of the utmost importance.”
As observers have reiterated, democracies must defend their shared values, he said.
As a nation on the front lines of the fight against authoritarianism, “if Taiwan falls, democratic values would fall with it,” he added.
Comments from the CCP leadership also indicate an intensification of unification efforts, Chiu said, citing the party’s vow in its historical resolution to solve the “Taiwan issue” and Xi’s call with US President Joe Biden on Tuesday last week, in which he threatened to take “decisive measures” if any red lines are crossed.
Even in the face of these threats, Taiwanese are united around the consensus represented by the “four commitments” that President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) proposed in her Double Ten National Day speech, Chiu said.
Taiwan does not stand alone, as more nations are voicing their support, he added.
Asked about a claim by the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference Daily on Saturday that Taiwanese would each stand to gain NT$20,000 annually from unification, Chiu said the report was unworthy of comment, laughing it off.
Taiwan is a democracy where people have gained freedom, sovereignty and the rule of law through the sacrifice of many, Chiu said.
“These values are just as important as the air, sun and water,” he said, adding that it is absurd that the CCP believes they are only worth NT$20,000.
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