Kuomintang (KMT) chairwoman Cheng Li-wun is marking a rare visit to China with the aim to lay the foundation for 'peace and stability' with Beijing, which maintains that the semi-independent island nation is part of One China and threatens to use force to annex it.
Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te’s government and his Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), which reject China’s claims of sovereignty, are concerned that Beijing is trying to increase influence through political actors to undermine the sovereignty of Taiwan and block US arms sales.
Cheng Li-wun, a former China hawk, seems to have doubled down on her previous stance to improve relations with Beijing. She has even gone on to criticise the Taiwanese government over $11 billion US arms sales procurement, stating that 'Taiwan is not an ATM'.
Since rising to a powerful position after the chairperson elections last year, she is considered a dark horse and pro-China politician gaining more ground against the ruling government.
She has openly supported and celebrated her Chinese heritage and urged the residents of Taiwan to be proud of their Chinese origin, while outrightly expressing support for Russian President Vladimir Putin.
She has been criticised for being too pro-Beijing, even by members of the KMT, which is traditionally seen as the party more friendly towards China.
Meanwhile, Beijing says its 'historic mission' is the 'reunification' of Taiwan with China, but it has not officially provided a timeline for when it hopes to take Taiwan.
Several members of the KMT party support Taiwan’s reunification with China, but only if it becomes a democracy. Though experts on the matter say it is just a matter of time before China takes full control of the island.
They say if Beijing manages to take control of the place, the US will lose all of its influence in the region, while it will also deal a huge blow to the chip-making and supply industry that the US heavily relies upon.
Beyond geographical or territorial importance, Taiwan has even greater importance as it remains one of the major countries producing semiconductor chips that Beijing needs desperately to reduce dependency on US makers like NVIDIA.
Also read: China encircles Taiwan with massive military build-up
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