China’s Xi Jinping vows Taiwan ‘reunification’ is inevitable, citing Sun Yat-sen legacy

Chinese President Xi Jinping declared on Thursday that the “complete reunification” of Taiwan with the mainland is an unstoppable historical mission, speaking at a high-profile commemorative event for the 160th anniversary of the birth of Sun Yat-sen, the revolutionary figure claimed by both Beijing and Taipei as a foundational national hero.

“The tide of history cannot be stopped,” Xi told an audience at the Great Hall of the People. “The complete reunification of the motherland must be realised, and it will certainly be realised.” He framed the issue as the Chinese Communist Party’s “unwavering historical mission” and reiterated Beijing’s preference for “peaceful reunification” under the “one country, two systems” formula, while upholding the “one-China principle.” Xi made no direct reference to the possible use of force, a tool China has never formally renounced.

The speech came as China marked the anniversary of Sun Yat-sen (1866–1925), who helped lead the 1911 Xinhai Revolution that ended more than two millennia of imperial rule and established the Republic of China. Beijing portrays Sun as a “great national hero, a great patriot and a great pioneer of China’s democratic revolution,” emphasising his commitment to national unity and opposition to any form of separation. Xi noted that Sun “consistently upheld the unity of the country and the solidarity of the nation.”

Taiwan’s government, which also officially venerates Sun as the “Father of the Nation,” has long contested Beijing’s interpretation of his legacy. Last month Taipei urged its citizens to avoid Chinese commemorative events, accusing Beijing of distorting Sun’s record. In Taiwan, Sun’s portrait still hangs in the presidential office, though his political philosophy—the Three Principles of the People—is no longer compulsory school curriculum. Taiwan’s government did not immediately respond to Xi’s latest remarks.

The two sides of the Taiwan Strait have been governed separately since 1949, when the defeated Republic of China government, led by the Kuomintang, retreated to Taiwan after losing the Chinese Civil War to Mao Zedong’s Communists. The People’s Republic of China was founded that year on the mainland. Beijing regards Taiwan as a renegade province that must eventually return to Chinese sovereignty. Taipei rejects the claim; the island’s democratically elected government insists that only the Taiwanese people can decide their future.

Xi’s remarks come at a politically sensitive moment. They precede by about a week the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Shenzhen, where Xi is expected to meet U.S. President Donald Trump. They also arrive roughly two weeks before local elections in Taiwan. China’s military continues to conduct regular operations around the island and has expanded its presence further into the Western Pacific, even as Beijing publicly stresses peaceful means.

Taiwan’s President Lai Ching-te and his ruling Democratic Progressive Party have increasingly emphasised a distinct Taiwanese identity while taking a firmer line on the Republic of China’s historical role. Taipei has objected in particular to Beijing’s efforts to claim primary credit for China’s victory in World War II, noting that the Republic of China government fought alongside the Allies at a time when the People’s Republic did not yet exist. Beijing labels Lai a “separatist” and has refused official dialogue with him.

The “one country, two systems” model, originally designed for Hong Kong and Macau, has found no significant support among Taiwan’s major political parties. Public opinion on the island has consistently shown strong resistance to unification under Beijing’s terms.

Xi’s speech underscores the enduring centrality of the Taiwan question in Chinese Communist Party ideology and the continued use of historical figures such as Sun Yat-sen to bolster claims of national unity. While the language of peaceful reunification remains the public framing, the underlying military and diplomatic pressure has not abated.