In his New Year's Day address, China's President Xi Jinping said that the "reunification" of Taiwan and China is inevitable.

This was said ahead of Taiwan's presidential elections on Jan. 13, 2024.

According to Xinhua, Xi said in his speech that China will "surely be reunified".

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He added that all Chinese on both sides of the Taiwan Straits should be "bound by a common sense of purpose and share in the glory of the rejuvenation of the Chinese Nation".

Reuters reported that China had been ramping up military pressure to assert its "sovereignty claims over democratically governed Taiwan".

In 2023, Xi said people on either side of the Taiwan Strait were "members of one and the same family", and he hoped people on both sides would work together to "jointly forster lasting prosperity of the Chinese nation", Reuters noted.

Taiwanese President's response

In response to Xi's statement that China will be "reunified", Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-Wen said that Taiwan's relations with China "must be decided by the will of the people".

Tsai also added that China should respect the outcome of Taiwan's election and that it was the responsibility of both to maintain peace and stability in the strait, Reuters said.

Taiwan's ruling party, the Democratic Party (DPP) and Taiwan's largest opposition party, Kuomintang (KTM), both said that only Taiwan's people can decide their future.

Top image via CGTN YouTube video screenshots