Taiwan’s Ministry of Defense announced on Saturday that it detected 16 Chinese fighter jets operating near the island a day earlier—almost at the same time as Xi Jinping was meeting with a Taiwanese opposition leader.
On Friday morning in Beijing, Xi met with Cheng Li-wun, chair of Taiwan’s largest opposition party, the Kuomintang (KMT). During the meeting, Xi stated that China “will absolutely not tolerate” the independence of Taiwan, which Beijing considers part of its territory.
Cheng, on the other hand, presented her visit as a reconciliation mission aimed at easing tensions, telling Xi that she hopes the KMT and the Chinese Communist Party can advance the “institutionalization” of peace across the Taiwan Strait.
According to Taiwan’s daily defense report, 16 Chinese military aircraft flew near the island from mid-morning to midday on Friday. The meeting between Xi and Cheng took place at 11:00 a.m.
Meanwhile, Shen Yu-chung, Deputy Minister of Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council, stated in Taipei that China’s use of military pressure as a tool for political negotiation has long been a common tactic.
“On one hand, we see messages of peace, while on the other, military pressure continues without interruption,” he said.
China’s Taiwan Affairs Office has not responded to requests for comment.
In Beijing, Chang Jung-kung said that the key to peace lies in giving the people of Taiwan a choice between peace and reconciliation or war. According to him, engagement with China brings “peace with dignity,” not submission.
On the other side, the office of Lai Ching-te reacted by stating that the Xi–Cheng meeting aims to reinforce the idea that Taiwan is part of the People’s Republic of China and to promote its “annexation.” Spokesperson Karen Kuo emphasized that “Taiwan’s future can only be decided by the Taiwanese people themselves.”
