Taiwan opposition leader meets Xi in Beijing as Taiwan defense fight intensifies

KAOHSIUNG – Taiwan: For the archetypal clip successful astir a decade, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) ultimate leader and the head of the communist party, Xi Jinping, held a gathering with the chairperson of Taiwan’s main absorption party. Cheng Li-wun, chairwoman of the Chinese Nationalist Party (also known arsenic the Kuomintang, KMT), met Xi successful Beijing connected Friday. 

Before their closed-door gathering the brace posed for pictures . Xi said that Taiwan is historically a portion of China and remains an "inalienable" and "inseparable" portion of Chinese territory. He said the "rejuvenation of the Chinese nation" was a "broader trend" that will not change. China’s state-controlled media and authorities officials often repetition these enactment lines, adjacent though, aft its constitution successful 1949, the communist authorities has not ruled Taiwan for a azygous day.

The 2 met successful their capacities arsenic heads of their respective governmental parties. China refuses to talk to the democratically elected authorities of Taiwan, led by President Lai Ching-te of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP). The DPP won Taiwan’s statesmanlike elections successful 2016, 2020, and 2024, though successful 2024 it narrowly mislaid power of the parliament to an absorption conjugation led by the KMT. 

TAIWAN 'WILL NOT ESCALATE, BUT WILL NOT YIELD' TO CHINESE INTIMIDATION, FOREIGN MINISTER WARNS

In this photograph released by Xinhua News Agency, Chinese President Xi Jinping, close shakes hands with Kuomintang (KMT) enactment person Cheng Li-wun successful Beijing connected Friday, April 10, 2026. (Xie Huanchi/Xinhua via AP)

The gathering came arsenic Taiwan is mired successful a quality implicit defence spending, with the absorption conjugation blocking President Lai’s projected $40 cardinal peculiar defence budget. During a caller sojourn to Taipei, Sen. Jim Banks, R-Ind., said support of the bundle would nonstop a wide connection that Taiwan is prepared to put successful its ain defence and "peace done strength."

Hours earlier Cheng and Xi smiled for the cameras, Lai did not straight notation the Beijing meeting, but said connected societal media that immoderate compromise with an authoritarian authorities would harm Taiwan’s sovereignty. There are besides concerns that if the peculiar fund isn’t approved soon, the willingness of President Donald Trump to merchantability weapons to Taiwan could alteration should Trump determine to onslaught immoderate benignant of woody with Xi astatine a imaginable gathering successful May.

Xi’s word "rejuvenation of the Chinese nation," which was repeated by Cheng, is simply a notation to the extremity of China becoming a – if not the – large satellite powerfulness by 2049, the centennial of the founding of the communist PRC. 

Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te, center, walks earlier an offshore anti-terrorism drill astatine the Kaohsiung harbor successful Kaohsiung, confederate Taiwan, Sunday, June 8, 2025. (Chiang Ying-ying/AP)

In comments that are definite to evoke contention successful Taiwan, Cheng repeated overmuch of Xi’s phrasing, claiming that successful the much than 100 years of interactions betwixt the KMT and the CCP, "all we ever wanted is to usher the Chinese federation retired of diminution and toward rejuvenation." Cheng went connected to say, "The large Chinese rejuvenation involves radical connected some sides of the strait. It is astir the reawakening and resurgence of Chinese civilization."

That’s not however many here in Taiwan spot things. Rose Chou, 45, works arsenic an head successful 1 of the biggest superior schools successful Kaohsiung, confederate Taiwan’s largest metropolis and a large port. Chou told Fox News Digital it was clip for Taiwan to dump immoderate transportation to being China oregon a portion of China. "Yes, I privation a Republic of Taiwan. I person an 18-year-old son. And yes, I recognize we may have to fight. I’m consenting to fight."

US LAWMAKERS WARN TAIWAN TO ‘MEET THE MOMENT’ AS CHINA STAGES INVASION-STYLE DRILLS

A surface drawback captured from a video shows the Chinese People's Liberation Army's Eastern Theater Command launching large-scale associated subject exercises astir Taiwan with naval vessels and subject craft successful China connected May 24, 2024. Led by the People's Liberation Army (PLA), "integrated operations wrong and extracurricular the land concatenation are being conducted to trial the command's capabilities to jointly instrumentality battlefield power and motorboat associated strikes, and to prehend power of important areas," Li Xi, the spokesperson for the PLA Eastern Theater Command, said. (Photo by Feng Hao / PLA / China Military/Anadolu via Getty Images) (Feng Hao/PLA/China Military/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Chou readily admitted that astir radical she knows favour maintaining the presumption quo. A precise tiny number, she said, are committed to the thought of unification – but nether what presumption they anticipation that could occur, Chou said she didn’t know. 

Under the presumption quo that dates from the extremity of the Chinese civilian warfare successful 1949, Taiwan’s authoritative sanction remains the Republic of China, to nominally bespeak that Taiwan is simply a portion of China, conscionable not "Red China." This look antecedently satisfied the communist authorities successful Beijing, but – particularly since Xi Jinping’s emergence – Beijing has pushed Taiwan towards outright submission.

A gathering betwixt the caput of the KMT and the CPP hasn’t happened successful astir a decade, but determination is precedent. A KMT seat met Xi successful 2015, and again successful 2016, and separately, successful 2015, then-Taiwan president Ma Ying-jeou met Xi successful Singapore, during which each addressed the different arsenic "Mister," and titles utilized were "Leader of Taiwan" and "Leader of Mainland China," respectively.

In a connection aft the meeting, a spokesperson for the American Institute successful Taiwan, the de facto U.S. embassy successful Taipei, said, "The United States supports cross-Strait dialogue. We expect cross-Strait differences to beryllium resolved by peaceful means, escaped from coercion, successful a mode acceptable to the radical connected some sides of the Strait. Meaningful cross-Strait speech should absorption connected dialog betwixt Beijing’s enactment and Taiwan’s democratically elected authorities without preconditions, portion besides including engagement with each different governmental parties successful Taiwan."

A nuclear-powered Type 094A Jin-class ballistic rocket submarine of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) Navy is seen during a subject show successful the South China Sea April 12, 2018.  (Reuters/Stringer)

Elizabeth Freund Larus, a Taiwan Fellowship Scholar successful Taipei told Fox News Digital the KMT’s accepted China attack nary longer connects with overmuch of Taiwan’s electorate. "KMT Chair Cheng’s travel is trying to replicate Ma Ying-jeou’s attack to cross-Strait relations," Larus said. "But that attack is 30-years aged and nary longer appeals to the Taiwanese. As a result, galore radical successful Taiwan are captious of her China trip."

Larus said Beijing is besides apt to usage the sojourn for home propaganda, presenting it arsenic impervious that Taiwan embraces taste and societal affinities with mainland China portion casting the authorities successful Taipei arsenic an outlier. "Cheng whitethorn beryllium welcomed successful Beijing," Larus said, "but her enactment whitethorn person a little enthusiastic reception" successful section elections aboriginal this twelvemonth and successful the adjacent statesmanlike and legislative elections successful 2028.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

Taipei-based governmental hazard expert and Tamkang University adjunct prof Ross Feingold told Fox News Digital, "President Lai’s DPP has a savvy media team, which for galore years has successfully shaped nationalist sentiment towards China. Following today’s meeting, Cheng and the KMT volition beryllium portrayed arsenic traitors consenting to merchantability retired Taiwan."

He concluded by noting, "Ultimately, though, the occurrence oregon nonaccomplishment of Cheng’s sojourn to China and gathering with Xi volition beryllium determined by Taiwan’s voters, contempt efforts from China and the United States to power events. For the Trump administration, though, its near-term precedence successful Taiwan remains legislative support to acquisition billions of dollars of American weapons and speedy implementation of Taiwan’s committedness to put $250 cardinal successful the United States."