Does the PRC really want Taiwan?

[Wilson23]

Hong Kong has turned out to be a very troublesome poison pill. Its population is 7.4 million. Taiwan's is 23.2 million. They have spent decades defining their quasi-national identity in opposition to the PRC, and they now have democratic government, which Hong Kong never had. Does the PRC really think it could manage them, even under a "one country, two systems" arrangement?

 

[Wilson23]

BTW, I happen to be the rightful Emperor of China. My regnal name is Dong Hang Lo. Of the Wang dynasty. When the monarchists inevitably and soon come to power, then by Our vermilion decree, the new national anthem of the most ancient and illustrious Middle Kingdom shall be, "Mister Wong Has the Biggest Tong in Chinatown." Let all men tremble, respect this, and obey without negligence.

 

[Wilson23]

It seems the Taiwanese have realized they can't rely on American protection any more

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026...ns-opposition-leader-calls-for-reconciliation
On rare China visit, Taiwan’s opposition leader calls for reconciliation
KMT chief Cheng Li-wun, the party’s first leader to visit China in a decade, hopes to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Taiwan’s main opposition leader has used a high-profile visit to China to push for dialogue with Beijing, invoking the legacy of revolutionary figure Sun Yat-sen amid rising cross-strait tensions.

Cheng Li-wun, chairwoman of the Kuomintang (KMT) party, laid a wreath at Sun’s mausoleum in Nanjing on Wednesday, in a gesture steeped in historical symbolism.

The city once served as the capital of the Republic of China before the KMT retreated to Taiwan in 1949 after losing the civil war to the communists led by Mao Zedong.

“The core values of Sun Yat-sen’s ideal that ‘all under heaven are equal’ have always been equality, inclusiveness, and unity,” Cheng said, in remarks broadcast live on Taiwanese television.

 

[Wilson23]

https://apnews.com/article/china-ta...wun-visit-xi-c72dd46ae64ee8e55c9df14cd56d5971
China says it will resume some ties with Taiwan after visit by opposition leader
BANGKOK (AP) — China said Sunday it would resume some ties it had suspended with Taiwan such as direct flights and imports of Taiwanese aquaculture products following a visit by the Beijing-friendly opposition leader of the self-ruled island.

The Taiwan Work Office under China’s Communist Party issued a statement saying it would explore setting up a longstanding communication mechanism between the Communist Party and Taiwan’s Kuomingtang Party. It said it will facilitate the import of Taiwan’s aquaculture products that it had previously banned.

Cheng Li-wun, the head of the Kuomingtang, and China’s President Xi Jinping held a high-profile meeting Friday during which they called for peace, without offering specifics. China claims the island as part of its territory and hasn’t ruled out the use of force to annex it.

Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council, which oversees the relationship with China, said the measures that were announced, such as promoting a communication mechanism, were “political transactions” between the two parties that circumvented the government of Taiwan.