• Xi reportedly expressed to Biden during last month's APEC Summit in San Francisco, California, that China would 'reunify' with Taiwan 
• Top lawmakers are expressing concern that the U.S. is projecting 'weakness'
• The White House downplayed the report, saying Xi's reported remarks are not 'different or new'

 

 

Top lawmakers are expressing concern that the U.S. is projecting 'weakness' after a new report revealed Chinese President Xi Jinping told President Biden he is planning to take over Taiwan soon.

Xi expressed to Biden during last month's APEC Summit in San Francisco, California, that China would 'reunify' with Taiwan, but the timing was still not determined, according to NBC News.

The Chinese president added that his preference is that Taiwan would be taken over 'peacefully' and not by force, according to three U.S. officials. 

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., who serves as the top Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee called the report 'beyond unnerving.'

'To communist China, if you think you can bully your way into destroying world order without consequences, you will be making Putin's decision to invade Ukraine look wise,' he said in a statement to DailyMail.com.

 

The top Republican pledged to work with his Democratic colleagues to first push through a 'robust' defense aid package to Taiwan and also draft 'pre-invasion' sanctions on China. 

He said imposing 'sanctions from hell' on China will deter the nation from trying to seize Taiwan. 

The South Carolina senator added that 'apparently China sees weakness' when it comes to the Biden-led United States. 

Another top Republican, Rep. Mike Waltz, echoed concerns that the Biden administration is projecting weakness. 

'China's dictator came to American soil and told Biden his face he's taking Taiwan,' Waltz, R-Fla., wrote on X.

'The world will not survive 5 more years of this WEAKNESS in the White House!,' he continued. 

 

FULL STORY

 

There is no question that Xi is a megalomaniac, and he could quite possibly be insane. The CCP is heinous beyond belief, and there's no question they're engaging in power expansion, the South China Sea is just the start. However, invading Taiwan could be a huge mistake for them, and it could and should result in massive, untold repercussions. 

 

He will do it and the world will 'protest in the strongest possible terms'. That's it. As it has about human rights abuses. What the world should do, and won't, is end all trade with China and close all their embassies worldwide. But money always has and always will trump human rights. And China knows that and the country will continue to do whatever it wants with impunity.

27 minutes ago, Bangkok Barry said:

 

He will do it and the world will 'protest in the strongest possible terms'. That's it. As it has about human rights abuses. What the world should do, and won't, is end all trade with China and close all their embassies worldwide. But money always has and always will trump human rights. And China knows that and the country will continue to do whatever it wants with impunity.

Well said.

Xi doesn't have to do anything just wait. The people of Taiwan are Chinese and when it benefits them to go with China they will go.. They have already changed the name of the airport, that should tell you something. The USA will howl as they always do when democracy fails to produce the answer they favour.

1 hour ago, hotchilli said:

Well said.

The "land of the free" will cry because they are losing another customer for their guns and bombs.  A country with 10% of the worlds' population and 25% of the worlds incarcerated , CIA prison ships etc. has no business talking about human rights,

Biden is less concerned with Xi and more concerned with ZZ's

4 minutes ago, RichardColeman said:

Biden is less concerned with Xi and more concerned with ZZ's

 

Yes, the orcs are a far bigger problem.

Edited December 23, 20232 yr by ozimoron

42 minutes ago, JMT42 said:

The "land of the free" will cry because they are losing another customer for their guns and bombs.  A country with 10% of the worlds' population and 25% of the worlds incarcerated , CIA prison ships etc. has no business talking about human rights,

If only some other country would step up and fight tyranny worldwide, the US wouldn't have to do it. 

4 minutes ago, Trippy said:

If only some other country would step up and fight tyranny worldwide, the US wouldn't have to do it. 

 

Without the UN, US and NATO, the world would be in endless wars.

Ever since Roman times the world has constantly been in a battle between the Patriarchs (oligarchs) and the Plebeians (democracy). Obviously the Plebeians vastly outnumbered the Patriarchs and so democracy was never the flavor of the month for the rich.

 

Nothing has changed. The oligarchs use their money to influence courts and create propaganda wherein they seek to convince plebeians to vote against their own best interests. Other than that they simply use military force to retain or gain control.

 

The US civil war was a triumph of democracy over oligarchy. WW1 and 2 were a triumph of the patriarchs over the plebeians. The end of WW2 saw the tide of fascism beaten back.  Now we are seeing it become ascendant again.

48 minutes ago, ozimoron said:

 

Without the UN, US and NATO, the world would be in endless wars.

There have been endless wars since at least the end of WW11!

The following conflicts overlapped each other, leaving no days where the entire world was at peace.

• 1942-1954, Hukbalahap Rebellion
• 1944-1947, Jewish Insurgency in Palestine
• 1942-1949, Ukrainian Insurgency
• 1944-1956, Guerilla war in the Baltic States
• 1948-1960, Malayan Emergency
• 1955-1975, Vietnam War
• 1960-1996, Guatemalan Civil War
• 1991-2002, Sierra Leone Civil War
• 2001-present, War in Afghanistan

 

See also the following;

• List of ongoing armed conflicts - Wikipedia
• All wars in the 20th century, since 1900 | the Polynational War Memorial (war-memorial.net)

war - Have there been only 26 days of peace since 1945? - Skeptics Stack Exchange

Edited December 23, 20232 yr by scottiejohn

3 hours ago, Bangkok Barry said:

 

He will do it and the world will 'protest in the strongest possible terms'. That's it. As it has about human rights abuses. What the world should do, and won't, is end all trade with China and close all their embassies worldwide. But money always has and always will trump human rights. And China knows that and the country will continue to do whatever it wants with impunity.

It works both ways. The 'West' is dependent on China and China is dependent on the 'West.

11 minutes ago, scottiejohn said:

There have been endless wars since at least the end of WW11!

The following conflicts overlapped each other, leaving no days where the entire world was at peace.

• 1942-1954, Hukbalahap Rebellion
• 1944-1947, Jewish Insurgency in Palestine
• 1942-1949, Ukrainian Insurgency
• 1944-1956, Guerilla war in the Baltic States
• 1948-1960, Malayan Emergency
• 1955-1975, Vietnam War
• 1960-1996, Guatemalan Civil War
• 1991-2002, Sierra Leone Civil War
• 2001-present, War in Afghanistan

 

See also the following;

• List of ongoing armed conflicts - Wikipedia
• All wars in the 20th century, since 1900 | the Polynational War Memorial (war-memorial.net)

war - Have there been only 26 days of peace since 1945? - Skeptics Stack Exchange

 

Those wars were mainly short lived or not actual wars between sovereign states. They mostly actually ended. They may have overlapped but were largely unrelated. I'm really discussing the bigger picture, at least regional wars if not world wars between states who represented democracy vs fascism. I'm not concerned with parochial grabs for power or land but real political winds of change in the world.

7 minutes ago, ozimoron said:

 

Those wars were mainly short lived or not actual wars between sovereign states. They mostly actually ended. They may have overlapped but were largely unrelated. I'm really discussing the bigger picture, at least regional wars if not world wars between states who represented democracy vs fascism. I'm not concerned with parochial grabs for power or land but real political winds of change in the world.

A war is a war!

From The Oxford English Dictionary;

war 
n    noun a state of armed conflict between different countries or different groups within a country. a state of competition, conflict, or hostility:

Edited December 23, 20232 yr by scottiejohn

7 hours ago, JMT42 said:

Xi doesn't have to do anything just wait. The people of Taiwan are Chinese and when it benefits them to go with China they will go.. They have already changed the name of the airport, that should tell you something. The USA will howl as they always do when democracy fails to produce the answer they favour.

"The people of Taiwan are Chinese and when it benefits them to go with China they will go."

 

I don't know anyone who has any problem with that outcome, if and when it happens.  Provided Taiwan is allowed to choose freely.

Anyone paying close attention to what's going on in China and HK now can't have helped notice the economy is slowly imploding. Stock markets have been mainly been in freefall over the last 3 years as the CCP tightens its grip and overseas investment evaporates and their foreign policy alienates the West. It's the Great Leap Backwards. What a waste. Hang Seng Index is at the same level as it was in 2007....

 

The Chinese army isn't geared up to fighting a war either and Xi knows the consequences of a prolonged engagement and more economic turmoil from sanctions could destabilise his grip. He will probably try and play the long game imo. He's President for life, remember. 

 

Someone mentioned the West depends on China. We do but they can be replaced. India along with contributions from Vietnam and other SE Asian countries are going to take their place over time imo. Already seeing Western manufactures beginning to look at reducing their footprint in China. There is no predictability on CCP policy - it's increasingly done on a whim. Look at yesterday - sudden announcement that they are looking at video game restrictions - Tencent (a huge tech company) plummets 12% in a day, NetEase down 28%. 

Edited December 23, 20232 yr by MarkyM3

Taiwan will not be able to choose, nor will they be able to protect themselves or stop the "takeover".

It will happen, & any token outside military action will be short & then come to an "arrangement"

or loose millions of military & maybe make their own country bankrupt.

The similarity happening in Europe now where not only the US but the European nearby countries have "just about had enough of spending their billions" supporting a war not of their making.

I see that Poland & Finland who are neighbouring countries of Russia are playing their violin behind the scenes.

Belarus ? well enough said

45 minutes ago, heybruce said:

"The people of Taiwan are Chinese and when it benefits them to go with China they will go."

 

I don't know anyone who has any problem with that outcome, if and when it happens.  Provided Taiwan is allowed to choose freely.

If they do choose freely they can forget about free choice thereafter. It will be a case of turkeys voting for Christmas. Look at what the National Security Law has done to Hong Kong.

 

Here in the UK, we've seen people moving here from HK who have British Overseas Passports (i.e. born before 1997 handover). Many had good careers but were willing to take low grade jobs just to get away from HK. Sad stuff. 

Edited December 23, 20232 yr by MarkyM3

3 hours ago, heybruce said:

"The people of Taiwan are Chinese and when it benefits them to go with China they will go."

 

I don't know anyone who has any problem with that outcome, if and when it happens.  Provided Taiwan is allowed to choose freely.

I'm not from the US, but in Malaysia, we did study a bit of American history.

 

I don't remember the Confederate States were allowed to secede peacefully from the United States in the American Civil War. And the United States is a federation. But China was never a federation. China has been a unitary state for thousands of years.

2 hours ago, MarkyM3 said:

If they do choose freely they can forget about free choice thereafter. It will be a case of turkeys voting for Christmas. Look at what the National Security Law has done to Hong Kong.

 

Here in the UK, we've seen people moving here from HK who have British Overseas Passports (i.e. born before 1997 handover). Many had good careers but were willing to take low grade jobs just to get away from HK. Sad stuff. 

I'm a Cantonese speaking Chinese Malaysian. If you are not an ethnic Chinese like me, I don't think you can understand the mentality of these Hongkies (we called them that) that "fled" to the UK. 

 

If you really want to understand these people, read the following article written by someone who I think is a Westerner:

 

Hong Kong Riots Have Nothing to Do With Human Rights, Everything to Do With HK’s Superiority Complex

 

Quote

The reason rule from Beijing is so distasteful, is not that it's especially oppressive, but that it's rule by perceived social inferiors

 

I know this as a fact because Hongkies look down on all other ethnic Chinese from anywhere, whether from the Mainland or from Southeast Asia.

2 hours ago, Selatan said:

But China was never a federation. China has been a unitary state for thousands of years.

  

However, Taiwan is almost as little a part of that glorious history as the "Nine Dash Line"... Statistically, more and more Taiwanese see themselves as just that, rather than being 'Chinese'. And after what happened in Hong Kong over the past 10-15 years, I very much doubt that the Taiwanese are eager to join China, at least not as long as the CCP is in power.

 

You could also argue that Ukraine is part of Russia's long history of a 'unitary state', which also has nothing to do with the realities of the 21st century...

Edited December 23, 20232 yr by StayinThailand2much

Well nobody really knows how China is doing at this point, as the economic numbers are like all fake, but I'm hearing stories that there are massive outflows of laborers from the cities, back of the provinces as Chinese production is way down. Hopefully this trend will continue and China will no longer be a huge factor down the road. They are not reliable allies and their expansionist hopes and dreams have no boundaries. The Chinese need to be stopped and hopefully this is happening as we speak. The CCP are power hungry hooligans and I don't think they would get away with being able to take Taiwan. 

Lots of drunks here want to Taiwan on. 😋

Edited December 24, 20232 yr by SiSePuede419

7 hours ago, StayinThailand2much said:

  

However, Taiwan is almost as little a part of that glorious history as the "Nine Dash Line"... Statistically, more and more Taiwanese see themselves as just that, rather than being 'Chinese'. And after what happened in Hong Kong over the past 10-15 years, I very much doubt that the Taiwanese are eager to join China, at least not as long as the CCP is in power.

 

You could also argue that Ukraine is part of Russia's long history of a 'unitary state', which also has nothing to do with the realities of the 21st century...

Originally, the "Nine Dash Line" was called the "Eleven Dash Line". The Eleven Dash Line was made by the Republic of China (ROC) aka Taiwan today back in 1947, before the founding of the People's Republic of China (PRC) in 1949. If the PRC claims itself as the legitimate government of the whole of China, then it has no choice but to inherit the Eleven Dash Line claim that the ROC had made, 2 years earlier. 

 

What exactly did China did to Hong Kong before the series of protests and later rioting? Nothing. It did not interfere in the running of Hong Kong until things get out of hand by imposing the National Security Laws. Mind you, under Hong Kong's mini constitution, the Basic Law, Hong Kong was required under Article 23 to enact a national security law on its own but it failed to do so because its weak politicians easily succumb to protests. The failure to enact a national security law had allowed foreign forces to make use of gullible youths to cause trouble in Hong Kong.

 

Hong Kong Basic Law Article 23

 

The former Soviet Union was a federation, not a unitary state. Russia itself, is a federation, so if the Donbas region of Ukraine wants to join it, are they allowed to?

1 hour ago, Selatan said:

The failure to enact a national security law had allowed foreign forces to make use of gullible youths to cause trouble in Hong Kong.

 

Hahahaha... Great conspiracy story! I had to laugh that hard that I spilled some of my morning coffee. I bet that you've never even been to Hong Kong in your life...

 

As you love the CCP so much, when will you move to Beijing to work at the propaganda ministry there?

Edited December 24, 20232 yr by StayinThailand2much

12 minutes ago, StayinThailand2much said:

 

Hahahaha... Great conspiracy story! I had to laugh that hard that I spilled some of my morning coffee. I bet that you've never even been to Hong Kong in your life...

 

As you love the CCP so much, when will you move to Beijing to work at the propaganda ministry there?

The first time I visited Hong Kong and immediately hated that place because of the very rude people there. When I crossed over to Shenzhen and got shocked with what I saw, so I knew that Hong Kong was a goner. I was thinking that those stuck-ups in Hong Kong would never accept that they have become nobodies in China already.

5 hours ago, Selatan said:

The former Soviet Union was a federation, not a unitary state. Russia itself, is a federation, so if the Donbas region of Ukraine wants to join it, are they allowed to?

The former Soviet Union may have been a federation, but Donbas was not one of the Federal States. That state was Ukraine. So, if you think it's okay for one part of a country to secede, why shouldn't Taiwan have that right as well. Of course, there should be free, supervised elections in both regions to make sure that the vote is honest. Wouldn't you agree?

41 minutes ago, Selatan said:

What exactly did China did to Hong Kong before the series of protests and later rioting? Nothing. It did not interfere in the running of Hong Kong until things get out of hand by imposing the National Security Laws. Mind you, under Hong Kong's mini constitution, the Basic Law, Hong Kong was required under Article 23 to enact a national security law on its own but it failed to do so because its weak politicians easily succumb to protests. The failure to enact a national security law had allowed foreign forces to make use of gullible youths to cause trouble in Hong Kong.

 

Hong Kong Basic Law Article 23

 

 

What you failed to mention is that a proposed bill that addressed this issue was opposed by China.

 

"Before 1997, the British colonial government introduced the Crimes (Amendment)(No.2) Bill 1996 in an attempt to concretise the concepts of "subversion" and "secession" by confining them to actual violent conduct but of no avail. The bill was voted down in the elected Legislative Council of Hong Kong amid opposition from Beijing and thus left a vacuum in the present legislation.^[6]"

^{https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hong_Kong_Basic_Law_Article_23#cite_note-6}

5 hours ago, Selatan said:

Originally, the "Nine Dash Line" was called the "Eleven Dash Line". The Eleven Dash Line was made by the Republic of China (ROC) aka Taiwan today back in 1947, before the founding of the People's Republic of China (PRC) in 1949. If the PRC claims itself as the legitimate government of the whole of China, then it has no choice but to inherit the Eleven Dash Line claim that the ROC had made, 2 years earlier. 

That was 1911 when open, unapologetic imperialsm and colonialism were still a thing. As you clearly haven't noticed, most colonialist and imperialist powers have given up their grandiose claims to having legitimate control over distant portions of the glove against the wishes of those nations and peoples living nearby.