Chinese President Xi Jinping joins a group deliberation of deputies from Shanghai to the annual session of the National People's Congress in Beijing, capital of China, March 5, 2016. (Photo: Xinhua/Ju Peng)
President Xi Jinping on Saturday warned against "Taiwan independence," saying that national secession should not be repeated.
"We will resolutely contain 'Taiwan independence' secessionist activities in any form," said Xi when joining a group of lawmakers from Shanghai on the first day of the national legislature's annual session.[Special coverage]
"We will safeguard the country's sovereignty and territorial integrity, and never allow the historical tragedy of national secession to happen again," Xi said.
"This is the common wish and firm will of all Chinese people. It is also our solemn commitment and our responsibility to history and the people," he said.
"Our policy toward Taiwan is clear and consistent, and it will not change along with the change in Taiwan's political situation," Xi told the legislators.
Tsai Ing-wen, candidate of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), won Taiwan's leadership election in January. Tsai defeated Eric Chu, candidate of the Kuomintang (KMT), the party which has ruled Taiwan for the past eight years.
"Compatriots from both sides of the Taiwan Strait are expecting the peaceful development of cross-Strait relations, and we should not disappoint them," he said.
"We will adhere to the 1992 Consensus as a political foundation, and continuously advance the peaceful development of cross-Strait ties," said the president.
Only by accepting the 1992 Consensus and recognizing its core implications can the two sides have a common political foundation and maintain good interactions, Xi said.
The 1992 Consensus clearly defines the nature of cross-Strait ties, and is the basis for the peaceful development of cross-Strait ties in the long run.
Xi said the results of the peaceful development of cross-Strait ties should be safeguarded by compatriots from both sides. Realizing the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation also needs the concerted efforts of people across the Strait.
The Chinese mainland will further promote cross-Strait cooperation and exchanges in all fields, deepen economic and social integration, and enhance the sense of a community of common destiny, the president said.
Fan Yun, deputy to the National People's Congress (NPC), the national legislature, and chairman of a Shanghai-based consulting firm, told Xinhua that in recent years Taiwanese companies have benefited from the rapid development of the Chinese mainland. As an entrepreneur, she believed that she has the commitment to tightening economic relations between the mainland and Taiwan.
Chen Weiwen, a national legislator and head of the Taiwan Democratic Self-Government League Guangdong Provincial Committee, said Xi's remarks reiterate the Chinese mainland's bottom line. It is also a stern warning against the Taiwan independence activists.
"The essence of the 1992 Consensus is recognizing the one-China principle and denying the rhetoric saying that each side of the Taiwan Strait is a country," Chen said.
"The president's remarks showed that the ultimate goal of peaceful development of cross-Strait ties is to achieve peaceful reunification of the two sides," Kong Lingzhi, an NPC deputy from Jilin Province, with Taiwan as his native place of origin.
The NPC and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) National Committee, the top political advisory body, are now on their annual sessions, with legislators and political advisors discussing major state affairs.
