Xi pledges ‘reunification’ with TaiwanCCP CENTENNIAL: Responding to Xi’s pledge, the Mainland Affairs Council said that Beijing should drop the military intimidation and talk with Taipei on an equal footingReuters, TAIPEI and BEIJINGChinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) yesterday pledged to complete “reunification” with Taiwan and vowed to “smash” any attempts at formal independence, drawing a stern rebuke from Taipei, which lambasted the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) as a dictatorship. China, which considers independent Taiwan as its own territory, has stepped up efforts under Xi to assert its sovereignty claims, including regular flights by fighter jets and bombers close to the nation. “Solving the Taiwan question and realizing the complete reunification of the motherland are the unswerving historical tasks of the CCP and the common aspiration of all Chinese people,” Xi said in a speech on the centennial of the party. A woman takes a selfie as Chinese President Xi Jinping’s speech is being broadcast on a large screen in Beijing during the cenntenial of the Chinese Communist Party yesterday. He has batted back criticism of his government’s actions in Hong Kong, attitude toward Taiwan and treatment of Uighurs.

Source: Taipei Times July 01, 2021 16:00 UTC