China promised Wednesday, August 10 to leave "
no room for maneuver
" to supporters of Taiwan independence, stressing that "
the use of force
" to reconquer the island remained on the table "
as a last resort
".
This new warning comes after extensive Chinese military exercises carried out in recent days around the island, in response to the visit to Taipei of the number three American Nancy Pelosi.
Economic incentives
The stay of the speaker of the House of Representatives was seen by Beijing as a provocation, the United States having pledged to have no official relationship with the island territory claimed by China.
The Taiwan Affairs Bureau, a Chinese government agency, released a "
white paper
" on Wednesday detailing how Beijing plans to regain possession of the island, including through economic incentives.
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"
We are willing to create a vast space (of cooperation) in order to achieve peaceful reunification
," said the document, in the form of an outstretched hand to the Taiwanese authorities.
“
But we will leave no leeway for separatist actions aimed at the pseudo-independence of Taiwan, in any form whatsoever.
China considers Taiwan, with a population of around 23 million, to be one of its provinces, which it has yet to successfully reunify with the rest of its territory since the end of the Chinese Civil War. (1949).
"Red Lines"
In seven decades, the communist army has never been able to conquer the island, which has remained under the control of the Republic of China - the regime that once ruled mainland China and now rules only Taiwan.
"
We are not committed to renouncing the use of force
," said Beijing's white paper on Wednesday, the first on this theme since 2000, before qualifying its remarks.
“
Force would be used as a last resort, in compelling circumstances.
We would be forced to take drastic measures in the face of provocations by separatists or external forces, if they were to cross our red lines.
The white paper also promises economic prosperity after "
reunification
."
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China thus proposes to strengthen cultural ties, in terms of social security, health or even to promote better economic “
integration
” via “
preferential policies
” in particular.
“
With a strong homeland to rely on, Taiwanese compatriots will be stronger, more confident, more secure and will be more respected on the international scene
,” the text promises.
From the 1980s, the political regime in Taiwan, once very authoritarian, evolved towards democracy.
Young people in Taiwan, especially in recent years, are beginning to develop an identity different from that of mainland China.
A phenomenon encouraged by the Progressive Democratic Party (PDP, pro-independence) of Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen, who came to power in 2016.
Fighter
Unlike the previous government, Ms. Tsai refuses to consider Taiwan and mainland China as part of a “one
China
”.
A position that has greatly strained relations with Beijing.
China considers the party of the Taiwanese president as “
separatist
”, but also any person publicly campaigning for independence or for the dilution of the Chinese identity of Taiwanese.
Beijing's communist army has conducted its largest-ever military exercises around Taiwan in recent days.
In particular, she trained in a blockade of the island with planes, ships and ballistic missile fire.
These maneuvers were to end on Sunday, but they continued on Monday and Tuesday.
No Chinese or Taiwanese organization has announced their conclusion.
The Chinese army on Wednesday released photos and videos of the operations carried out the day before.
They show in particular fighter planes taking off, filming the Taiwanese coast or even being refueled in flight.
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On the Taiwan side, the military conducted its own drills on Tuesday to practice attacking the island.
“
Any attempt to oppose reunification by armed force (…)
is “
doomed to failure
”, Wang Wenbin, a spokesman for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told the press.