On the 12th, China's State Council Information Office released a 20,000-word white paper titled "China's National Security in the New Era," emphasizing its firm opposition to the assertion that Taiwan's status is undetermined. Taiwanese scholars have described this as another countermeasure to recent efforts by congresses, think tanks, and politicians in Europe and the United States to overturn China's assertion in UN General Assembly Resolution 2758 that Taiwan is a part of the country.
In its white paper, China declared that the legal validity of UN General Assembly Resolution 2758 is beyond doubt, and that Taiwan is a province of China and has no basis, reason or right to participate in the United Nations and other international organizations that only sovereign states can join.
The text mentions Taiwan many times, including reiterating opposition to "Taiwan independence" and emphasizing that China has always strived for peaceful reunification with the utmost sincerity and made every effort, but will never promise to give up the use of force and reserves the option to take all necessary measures.
The white paper reiterated the adherence to "one China" and the "1992 Consensus", unswervingly advancing complete reunification, promoting the peaceful and integrated development of cross-strait relations, strengthening cross-strait dialogue, communication and democratic consultation, and jointly discussing the grand plan of reunification.
Shen Mingshi, a researcher at the Institute for National Security Studies at the Taiwan Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said that the national security white paper released by the Chinese government is another wave of countermeasures against the recent overturning of China's statement in UN General Assembly Resolution 2758 by congresses, think tanks, and politicians in many European and American countries that Taiwan is a part of them. It is also a countermeasure to Taiwan President Lai Ching-te's emphasis on the two sides of the Taiwan Strait being independent of each other and that the Republic of China (Taiwan) is a sovereign and independent country.
Shen Mingshi analyzed that Beijing now wants to rule Taiwan by force, but there are many limiting factors. Therefore, it intends to frame Taiwan through legal battles so that it can gain legitimacy and justice when it uses force to resolve the Taiwan issue in the future.
Lin Tinghui, former deputy secretary-general of the Taiwan Society of International Law, believes that the focus and level of concern of this white paper clearly lean towards issues related to the Taiwan Strait, the South China Sea, and the East China Sea, indicating that China has felt strong pressure from the United States in its overall strategy. Therefore, it is also trying to warn the United States through this report not to touch these core interests, otherwise China may take countermeasures.
Lin Tinghui emphasized that cross-strait issues haven't been a prominent topic in China's national security white papers in the past, with more emphasis being placed on issues like counter-terrorism in Xinjiang and even non-traditional security concepts. China may now be feeling significant pressure from the United States, shifting its focus to the Taiwan Strait and Taiwan issues.
