People's Republic of China (PRC) President Xi Jinping warned that he will not hesitate to use force to retake Taiwan during his opening speech at the 20th Congress of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
Xi is expected to win a third term during the event, which would cement his place as the country's most powerful ruler since Mao Zedong, the CCP chairman from the establishment of the PRC in 1949 until his death in 1976.
The Chinese leader also blasted the United States government and other Western forces for interfering in its reunification efforts with Taiwan.
The Congress, where roughly 2,300 delegates came together from around the country, began in the vast Great Hall of the People on the west side of Tiananmen Square amid tight security and under blue skies after several smoggy days in Beijing.
Xi touted the party's safeguarding of national security, maintaining social stability, protecting people's lives and taking control of the situation in Hong Kong, which was rocked by antigovernment protests in 2019.
Regarding Taiwan, he said that his government has resolutely waged a major struggle against separatism and interference. "We demonstrate our strong determination and ability to safeguard state sovereignty and territorial integrity and oppose Taiwan's independence," he said.
He emphasized that China will "never commit to abandoning the use of force" in its unification with Taiwan, which he called inevitable. According to him, China will accelerate the building of world-class military and strengthen its ability to build a strategic deterrent capability. This was received with a warm round of applause from the CCP Congress delegates.
In her national day speech on Monday, Oct. 17, Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen said war between Taiwan and China was not an option and reiterated her willingness to talk to Beijing, even as she pledged to keep boosting Taiwan's defenses.
Meanwhile, China's relations with the West have deteriorated and were worsened by Xi's support of Russian President Vladimir Putin. Tensions also rose in August after the Taiwan visit of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. (Related: Biden commits to sending American troops if China invades Taiwan.)
China firm on zero-COVID strategy
Heading into the Congress, China repeatedly emphasized its commitment to Xi's zero-COVID strategy.
According to official records, about "only" 5,200 people died in China over the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) due to strict lockdown measures. However, the strict public health measures have taken their toll on the economy.
One of Zhengzhou's districts has been locked down to "tame" a virus flareup, with the government ordering almost one million residents to stay home and non-essential businesses to be closed, in strict compliance with Xi's zero-COVID Zero strategy.
According to a government notice, those who need to undergo COVID-19 tests are the only people allowed to go outside.
As per Bloomberg, there have been six new local COVID-19 cases on Sunday, Oct. 16, which is down from a recent peak of 40 on October 9. Across China, reported cases declined to 697, which has been the lowest in two weeks.
In Shanghai, which reported 32 new cases, some schools have suspended in-person classes while entertainment venues have temporarily shut down.
Observers noted how Xi seemed to have been avoiding to mention how lockdowns affect the economy during the CCP Congress speech, especially since investors have been hoping that they loosen their public health mandates. Said mandates have been "costly" to the stakeholders as these have already disrupted the supply chain of industries such as cars, phones and even Christmas trees.
Also, Chinese residents are becoming frustrated at the CCP's authoritarian policies.
"I have accepted lockdowns, forced COVID-19 tests and health codes, but this thing feels like surveillance just for the sake of surveillance. I am afraid that the COVID-19 strategy is starting to be about controlling Chinese people instead of fighting COVID-19," a 34-year old female resident of Beijing said.
Visit CommunistChina.news for more news related to CCP's draconian policies.
Watch the video below that talks about Taiwan's response to Xi's CCP Congress speech.
This video is from the Chinese taking down EVIL CCP channel on Brighteon.com.
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