At Party Centennial, Xi Insists "One China" Principle, 1992 Consensus
United Daily News, July 2, 2021
The centennial celebration of the Chinese Communist Party was held in Beijing on July 1. In his remarks, President Xi Jinping, who also serves as the party’s general-secretary, insisted upon the “One China” principle, 1992 Consensus, advancement of peaceful unification, as well as defeat of any scheme of Taiwan independence. Xi also emphasized that foreign powers hoping to bully China shall be “battered and bloodied.”
The grand celebration was held in Tiananmen Square with the attendance of more than 70,000 people including Xi Jinping and current party leadership. Former President and General-Secretary Hu Jintao and former Premier Wen Jiabao also appeared on the Tiananmen Tower. However, former President and General-Secretary Jiang Zemin and former Premier Zhu Rongji were absent. During the celebration, military aircrafts performed a flyover accompanied with gun salutes and playing of patriotic songs.
In the speech that took more than an hour, Xi not only reiterated his adherence to the “One China” principle and 1992 Consensus, he also stated that resolving the Taiwan issue and achieving the complete Chinese reunification is the unwavering historical mission of the Communist Party. Xi proclaimed that no one should underestimate the strong determination, unwavering will, and great power of the Chinese people to protect their nation’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
Xi also announced that the Communist Party has realized its first centenary goal that they’ve been striving for, which is to “bring about a historic resolution to the problem of absolute poverty”. Now, the party will continue to lead China into the second century towards a comprehensive modern socialist country. Xi then continued with reviewing the history and achievements of the party and stressed upon the importance of persistently developing socialism with Chinese characteristics and following their own path.
Towards the second half of the speech, Xi fiercely condemned hegemonism saying that Beijing would not accept sanctimonious preaching from those who feel they have the right, and added that Chinese people do not carry the traits of invading others, nor dominate or practice hegemonism. According to Xi, any attempt to divide the party from the Chinese people or to set the people against the party is bound to fail. More than 95 million party members and more than 1.4 billion Chinese people will never allow such a scenario to come to pass.
Xi then warned that the Chinese people will never allow any foreign force to bully, oppress, or subjugate them. Anyone who would attempt to do so will find themselves on a collision course with a great wall of steel forged by over 1.4 billion Chinese people. Even though Xi did not name any country, it is believed that he was expressing dissatisfaction towards the United States.
In addition, Xi also remarked on Beijing’s implementing of comprehensive governance over Hong Kong, as well as maintaining and protecting the law system and enforcement mechanism for safeguarding national security. At the same time, Xi mentioned the need to accelerate the modernization of armed forces and national security.
As for why Xi did not mention “One Country, Two Systems” related to Taiwan, Deputy Director Bao Chengke of the Graduate Institute of Cross-Strait Exchange and Regional Development, East China Normal University, believes that “One Country” is the key, while “Two Systems” is the method, according to the report done by the China Review News Agency. If everyone can accept that both sides of the strait belong to the same country, then there will definitely be a solution to the Taiwan issue. Bao said that though there are differences between the two sides of the strait, these differences can be kept within the framework “One China.” However, a whole China is the goal and direction of mainland, which is fully reflected in Xi’s remarks. Bao believes that China would not use the same system as inside the mainland to solve the Taiwan problem, but one day there will be reunification between the two sides of the strait.
In response to Xi’s remarks, the spokesman of the United States Department of State stated that the United States will continue to support peaceful resolution to the cross-strait issues in the circumstances that conform to the wishes and best interests of the Taiwan people. Instead of exerting military, diplomatic, and economic pressure, the United States urges Beijing to engage in meaningful dialogue with Taiwan.
From:
https://udn.com/news/story/7331/5572642
https://udn.com/news/story/7331/5573101