Govt Work Report on the Taiwan question signals fighting secessionism become top priority
Global TimesMar 05
In a government report delivered Tuesday by Premier Li Qiang, China revised its stance on Taiwan — calling for a "reunification" rather than "peaceful reunification" — and proposed to boost defense spending by 7.2% — as much as it did last year.
This follows Taiwan's recent election, which gave the pro-independence Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) its third consecutive term. Beijing and Taipei have had no official communication since DPP's 2016 victory.
Of course the Western media is translating the dropping of the word "peaceful" as some sort of threat to Taiwan. But China is still committed to a peaceful reunification and this change in phrasing reflects the urgency with which China views the matter, not a change in policy.
There's nothing innocuous about a rapidly militarizing China changing the tone of its official voice when it comes to Taiwan. Today's context, including Beijing's recent saber-rattling, makes this far more ominous than Beijing would have one believe. This change of language is deeply concerning.
There's a 40% chance that the People's Republic of China will have annexed at least half of Taiwan by Jan. 1, 2050, according to the Metaculus prediction community.