Chinese President Xi Jinping reaffirmed his commitment to pursuing unification with Taiwan and emphasized a "strong military" doctrine in a speech marking the 105th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China on Monday.
Xi, who serves as general secretary of the Communist Party of China, delivered an "important speech" at the founding anniversary ceremony held that morning at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. "We will resolutely strike separatist forces seeking Taiwan independence and oppose interference by external forces," he said. "We must firmly advance the great cause of national unification."
"Resolving the Taiwan issue and achieving the complete reunification of the motherland is a historic mission our party has consistently pursued, and the shared aspiration of all sons and daughters of the Chinese nation," he said, asserting that China must adhere to the "One China" principle and the "1992 Consensus" (an agreement reached in 1992 to recognize "One China" while each side uses its own name).
Xi went on to emphasize the "strong military" doctrine, a key military guiding ideology. "To become a strong nation, we must have a strong military, and only a strong military ensures the country's security," he stressed. "We must comprehensively implement the party's strong military thinking for the new era and carry out the military strategy guidelines for the new era."
"We must advance national defense and military modernization to a high level, achieve the goal of the centennial of the founding of the army as scheduled, and build the people's army into a world-class military at a faster pace," he said.
Xi also praised the 105th anniversary of the party's founding as a "proud and glorious history," while cautioning against complacency. "We must never be arrogant or complacent, nor should we rest on the present," he said. "By the middle of this century, we must comprehensively build a modern socialist power and achieve the second centenary goal."
