Beijing is hastening efforts to revise its “one country, two systems” framework as part of a plan to legitimize an invasion of Taiwan, a report commissioned by the Mainland Affairs Council said.
Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) has presided over the transformation of the scheme from a proposal for unification with Taiwan to a phased operational plan, academics wrote in the report.
The changes are emblematic of a policy shift within Beijing toward what its leaders call “Taiwan work for the new epoch,” an agenda the newly appointed deputy leader of the Central Leading Group for Taiwan Affairs Wang Huning (王滬寧) is to facilitate, the report said.
Photo: Chung Li-hua, Taipei Times
The revised “one country, two systems” scheme includes plans to establish a platform for cross-strait negotiations that would lay the groundwork for the post-unification administration and governance of Taiwan, it said.
A system for negotiations would bolster China’s legitimacy by framing its rule over Taiwan as an arrangement created through a democratic process, it said.
Beijing is also pursuing a policy to shape public opinion against Taiwanese independence, while promoting support for negotiations and gradual unification, with the aim of weakening Taiwan’s internal opposition to China, it said.
The informational efforts are intended to bolster pro-Beijing leaders and factions within Taiwan that could become partners in negotiations, the report said.
China’s likely goal in creating a road map to “unification” is to build legitimacy for an armed invasion, pre-empt international support for Taiwan and break the will of Taiwanese to resist, it said.
Beijing could be considering incorporating a Taiwan policy into its framework of national security laws, which would enable China to exercise extra-territorial jurisdiction under the guise of promoting regional peace and stability, it said.
Taipei should urgently make military preparations, but refrain from seeking conflict or showing fear of war, the report said, adding that the government should seek to reclaim control over the cross-strait narrative to increase bargaining power in negotiations.
Taiwan should maintain its close relationships with Japan and the US, continue efforts to underscore the importance of deterring war in the Taiwan Strait to the international community and emphasize the nation’s free and democratic values, it said.
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