China’s Xi invokes ‘threat’ of Taiwan independence in first cross-strait opposition talks in a decade

Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Cheng Li-wun, Kuomintang party chair, in Beijing on Friday, the first encounter between Xi and a sitting Taiwanese opposition leader in nearly a decade. In a readout released by Chinese state media, Xi said Beijing “welcomes any proposals conducive to the peaceful development of cross-strait relations.” That’s according to a CNBC translation of the statement in Chinese.

Xi also reiterated that “‘Taiwan independence’ is the primary threat undermining stability across the Taiwan Strait,” calling on party leaders on the mainland and Taiwan to oppose “separatism and foreign interference.”

Cheng took the helm last October of the largest opposition party at a time of rising military and political tensions with the mainland. Her trip to Beijing came as the KMT seeks to position itself as a viable interlocutor with the mainland ahead of Taiwan’s 2028 presidential election.

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