Xi: Peaceful reunification in the interests of both China and Taiwan

This will be realised as country heads to national rejuvenation, he says on eve of island’s national day

- Aw Cheng Wei, China Correspondent In Beijing

Reunification with Taiwan “will be and can be realised” as China strides towards national rejuvenation, Chinese President Xi Jinping said yesterday, the eve of the self-ruled island’s national day.

Peaceful reunification is in the best interests of both the mainland and Taiwan, he said in a televised speech on the 110th anniversary of the 1911 revolution which overthrew the last Qing emperor and led to the founding of the Republic of China in 1912.

The Xinhai Revolution in 1911 also led to a search for the path to national rejuvenation.

“Compatriots on both sides of the Taiwan Strait should stand on the right side of history and join hands to achieve China’s complete reunification and the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation,” Mr Xi said.

“Those who forget their heritage, betray their motherland and seek to split the country will come to no good end,” he said, adding that “the Taiwan question is purely an internal matter for China, one which brooks no external interference”.