Xi Jinping recently inspected the Central Military Commission’s (CMC) joint operations command center. Taiwanese experts believes that it is a sign of the regime’s desire to take over Taiwan.
After the inspection on Nov.8, Xi made a speech to the troops in which he ordered the army to gear up for a fighting war.
Just two weeks ago, Xi was re-elected as leader of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and head of the military commission at the 20th Party Congress, which concluded on Oct. 22.
Zhou Zonghan, with a doctorate in international politics at National Chung Hsing University in Taiwan, believes that Xi’s quick move to look at the military reflects an urgency in considering when to force “reunification” on Taiwan.
“Now, Xi is in power, at the peak of the CCP, [and] hoping to make a name for himself in history or to have an opportunity to make a name for himself.” Zhou told The Epoch Times on Nov. 11, that Xi’s mentioning the reunification of Taiwan may be the “glorious fame” in CCP history that he seeks.
As the highest operational command of the CCP military, CMC’s joint operations command center “… is a permanent institution responsible for commanding the joint operations of the three armed forces” and sending military instructions daily, according to official media CCTV.
It is widely suspected that Xi’s move shows the CCP’s intention to take Taiwan by force could be speeding up, as reported by CNN, Washington Post, Deutsche Welle News, and other foreign media.
Zhou shares similar views that there seems to be haste in the CCP’s so-called reunification of Taiwan and that Xi cannot wait to scrutinize his armed forces in terms of maritime crossing, air control, and a fleet interception.
A sweeping military reshuffle has been carried out since Xi served as chief of the highest military body for more than a decade, and Xi has purged those he does not trust, whether commanders or political commissars, according to Zhou.
“The CCP now needs to verify the results of the military reshuffle, after all, the drills and exercises of the Chinese military are just drills, not real military operations,” said Zhou.
Xi has reportedly inspected CMC’s joint operations command center in his capacity as commander-in-chief of the Military Commission at least three times in the past years—in 2016, 2017, and 2018—and repeatedly demanded the army improve its readiness and combat capabilities.
“I personally believe that the war is almost unavoidable,” said Zhou, stressing, “to seize Taiwan by force is [the ] CCP’s core interest.”
“But it is still unclear how far it will go and how far the U.S. will intervene,” Zhou added.
Ellen Wan contributed to this report.
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