China

China Alters Phrasing of Taiwan Stance

Published MAR 5 2024

Story

Image credit: Lintao Zhang/Staff/Getty Images News via Getty Images

The Facts

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.
Reuters
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.
CNA
China's previous six reports since Pres. Xi Jinping's 2013 ascension to power mentioned "peaceful reunification."
South China Morning Post
China's budget, also presented Tuesday, allocated 1.67T yuan ($230.6B) to the military. Intelligence experts say the real figure could be closer to the US's defense budget from last year of more than $800B.
Asia Financial
Data from the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies shows this is the 30th straight annual hike in China's defense budget, which keeps China on its path toward Xi's goal of full modernization by 2035.
Reuters

Sources Split

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The Spin

Pro-China narrative

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.

Global Times

Anti-China narrative

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.