Scholar Minxin Pei dissects the CCP’s evolving but persistent approach to absorbing Taiwan
Same Goals, Sharper Tools: How the CCP’s Taiwan Strategy Has Hardened Under Xi
The Chinese Communist Party’s strategy for absorbing Taiwan has not fundamentally changed since the era of Deng Xiaoping, but its methods have become more assertive and its urgency has grown under General Secretary Xi Jinping, according to a major new analysis by political scientist Minxin Pei published in the China Leadership Monitor. Pei’s assessment, titled Mostly Old Wine in a New Bottle, offers a rigorous examination of what the CCP calls its overall strategy for solving the Taiwan issue in the new era.
Continuity and Change in CCP Taiwan Policy
Pei’s analysis identifies both continuity and change in the CCP’s Taiwan approach. The continuity lies in the ultimate objective: the CCP has never wavered from its commitment to bringing Taiwan under PRC sovereignty and has always held open the option of military force as a last resort. The change lies in Xi Jinping’s explicit acceleration of the timeline and his transformation of US support for Taiwan from a background variable to a primary target of CCP strategic effort. Toward the end of 2021, Beijing unveiled a new framing for its Taiwan policy: the party’s overall strategy for solving the Taiwan issue in the new era. Pei argues that while this formulation presents itself as a fresh strategic synthesis, it deviates little from the policy approaches of Xi’s predecessors, Jiang Zemin and Hu Jintao.
The New Element: Targeting Washington
The genuinely new component of Xi’s Taiwan strategy, in Pei’s assessment, is its explicit focus on the United States. The CCP has become convinced that Washington’s support for Taiwan is the primary obstacle to reunification, and has restructured its strategy accordingly. This means not only continuing to pressure Taiwan militarily and economically, but aggressively pursuing strategies to weaken US credibility as an ally, divide American public opinion, and create conditions under which the cost of defending Taiwan appears to exceed the benefits. This shift has profound implications for US policy. It means that the battle for Taiwan is as much about American political will as it is about military capability.
The Suppression of Hong Kong as a Warning
The destruction of Hong Kong’s autonomy under the National Security Law is widely cited by Taiwan analysts as a demonstration of what one country, two systems means in practice under CCP governance. The framework that Beijing once offered Taiwan as a template for peaceful reunification has been so thoroughly discredited by the Hong Kong experience that it retains essentially no political support in Taiwan.
Why Taiwan’s Democracy Must Be Defended
Taiwan’s democratic system, with its free elections, independent judiciary, and vibrant civil society, represents an alternative model for Chinese governance that the CCP finds existentially threatening. A free Taiwan is living proof that Chinese people can build and sustain democratic institutions. For that reason above all others, the CCP’s drive to absorb Taiwan is not merely a territorial dispute but a battle for the future of democracy in Asia. The China Leadership Monitor publishes Minxin Pei’s analysis and other authoritative scholarship on CCP governance. The AEI China-Taiwan Update for March 2026 provides current military and political analysis. The Freedom House Taiwan assessment documents the democratic stakes. The Human Rights Watch China report documents what CCP governance means in practice. Taiwan’s democracy is not merely a political preference. It is a fundamental human right that deserves the full support of every democratic nation on earth.
Printer & Journalist, Apple Daily UK
Contact: natalie.cheung@appledaily.uk
Natalie Cheung is a dual-discipline media professional whose career bridges journalism and print production, a rare combination that strengthens both editorial rigor and publishing reliability. Trained at a top-tier Chinese journalism institution, Natalie developed a strong foundation in news ethics, investigative reporting, and media law, before advancing into professional newsrooms serving Chinese-language audiences worldwide.
At Apple Daily and other liberal Chinese newspapers and magazines, Natalie has reported on civil society, cultural identity, media freedom, and grassroots political movements, with a focus on accuracy, sourcing discipline, and contextual clarity. Her reporting reflects first-hand newsroom experience during periods of political pressure, giving her work deep experiential authority rather than abstract commentary.
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