Australian think tank “China Matters” (China Matters) released a new research report on the 9th that Chinese Communist Party President Xi Jinping has made up his mind to complete reunification in his generation, and said that the earliest possible use of “various means other than war” in 2024 “to force Taiwan to accept reunification.
Unlike other Communist Party leaders, Xi Jinping will not leave the issue of reunification to future generations, the Australian think tank noted.
Linda Jakobson, co-founder and director of the Australian think tank China Matters, said in the report that Xi Jinping may use “means other than war” to seek reunification. If Beijing exerts pressure on Taiwan, Australia should plan with its allies to respond, because Taiwan is the kind of vibrant, free democracy that Australia would like to see flourish in the Indo-Pacific region.
The report notes that Xi Jinping, unlike other Chinese Communist leaders, will not leave the issue of reunification to future generations and is more likely to force Taiwan’s leaders to the negotiating table in a state of non-military confrontation and accept the Communist Party’s reunification talks, although military conflict cannot be completely ruled out.
Jacobsen predicts that, first, Beijing may pressure Taiwanese businessmen on the mainland to engage in cross-strait political dialogue; second, force international airlines to choose between flights to the mainland or Taiwan; third, launch a disinformation war and a series of cyber attacks; and fourth, increase military activity near Taiwan’s coast.
The report mentions that triggering a unification move by the CCP could occur in 2024, when a more pro-independence president could emerge in Taiwan’s presidential election to aggressively seek recognition of Taiwan’s independence, thus further angering Beijing.
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