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Amber Wang

Progress towards reunifying with Taiwan hinges on factors like the island’s level of provocation, retired PLA major general Luo Yuan told the South China Morning Post, warning that Taiwan’s leader had challenged Beijing’s red lines.
Speaking on the sidelines of the Xiangshan Forum in Beijing on Wednesday, Luo said the timeline for reunification with mainland China was shaped by “the development of our national strength, our defence needs, the global security environment, as well as the degree of provocation from Taiwan”.
If Taiwanese leader William Lai Ching-te “continues to provoke, the Taiwan Strait will be plunged into a dangerous situation fraught with the risk of conflict”, added Luo, who is widely regarded as a hardline figure.
Luo’s remarks came amid heightened cross-strait tensions since Lai, of the independent-leaning Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), took office in 2024.

Luo also referred to Lai’s description last year of mainland China as a “foreign hostile force”, saying it had “challenged our red lines”. Beijing has repeatedly denounced Lai as a separatist and accused him of fuelling tensions since his inauguration.
“Peaceful reunification remains our sincere aspiration,” the retired PLA major general said.
“But whether it is achieved through peaceful means, force or other non-peaceful means, these are merely means. The ultimate goal is to achieve reunification,” he added, calling reunification “irreversible”.
Luo is a senior adviser to the Xiangshan Forum, China’s flagship security conference. The gathering is often seen as a counterpart to the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore. Defence officials and academics from nearly 100 countries are attending this year.
In a departure from last year’s conference, Chinese Defence Minister Dong Jun did not mention Taiwan in his keynote speech to the forum on Wednesday.
Still, the issue remained prominent in panel discussions, drawing particular attention ahead of an expected summit in Washington next week between Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump.
Beijing has described Taiwan as “the first red line that cannot be crossed” in Sino-US relations.
Beijing sees Taiwan as part of China to be reunited by force if necessary.
Most countries, including the United States, do not recognise Taiwan as an independent state, but Washington is opposed to any attempt to take the self-ruled island by force and is committed to supplying it with weapons.


Luo said an important aspect of the Taiwan issue was US arms sales to the island, likening them to “playing with fire”.
With a US$14 billion arms package for Taiwan reportedly awaiting Trump’s approval for months, weapons sales are an especially sensitive issue ahead of Xi’s expected state visit.
Chang Ya-chung, a Taiwanese political scientist who attended this year’s Xiangshan Forum, warned of a difficult situation in the Taiwan Strait, pointing to what he described as Japan’s increasingly prominent security role around Taiwan.
Speaking at a panel session on Wednesday, Chang, who now heads the Taipei-based Sun Yat-sen School, said a “tacit security alliance” was emerging between Taiwan and Tokyo, citing their cooperation in the drone industry as an example.
Relations between Beijing and Tokyo deteriorated following remarks in November last year by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi regarding Taiwan.
Takaichi told Japan’s parliament that a PLA attack on Taiwan could constitute a “survival-threatening situation” for Japan, potentially allowing Japanese forces to intervene.
During Wednesday’s panel, Chang called for the swift resumption of institutionalised communication between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait. The arrangement was suspended after Tsai Ing-wen of the DPP became Taiwan’s leader in 2016.
Chang also called for a crisis-management channel to help maintain peace across the strait, arguing that “the foundation of peace across the Taiwan Strait remains political dialogue between the two sides”.
Chang is an advocate for reunification. He ran unsuccessfully for the chairmanship of the Kuomintang (KMT), Taiwan’s main opposition party, in 2021 and 2025.
“The two sides should resume institutionalised communication as soon as possible, establish mechanisms for military crisis management and mutual trust, and begin political dialogue on ending hostilities and signing a memorandum of peace,” Chang said.


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Retired PLA major general Luo Yuan is a senior adviser to the Xiangshan Forum, China’s flagship security conference. Photo: Simon Song

Taiwanese leader William Lai Ching-te, whom Beijing has called a separatist, took office in 2024. Photo: AP

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Chinese Defence Minister Dong Jun arrives for the opening ceremony of the Xiangshan Forum in Beijing on Wednesday. Photo: EPA

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Genta Koja (centre) celebrates with his supporters in Naha, Okinawa, after reports projected his victory in the prefecture's gubernatorial election on September 13. Photo: AFP

Construction work continues on the US Marine Corps facility in Henoko, Okinawa, on August 23. Photo: Kyodo 

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The MQ-9B SeaGuardian surveillance drone is made by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems. Photo: Handout

Taiwanese leader William Lai Ching-te speaks in front of a Teng Yun uncrewed aerial vehicle during a visit to a division of the National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology in Taichung on July 17. Photo: Reuters

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China

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Island’s leader William Lai has ‘challenged our red lines’, Luo Yuan says on sidelines of Beijing’s Xiangshan Forum


Island’s leader William Lai has ‘challenged our red lines’, Luo Yuan says on sidelines of Beijing’s Xiangshan Forum.


.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Island’s leader William Lai has ‘challenged our red lines’, Luo Yuan says on sidelines of Beijing’s Xiangshan Forum

Island’s leader William Lai has ‘challenged our red lines’, Luo Yuan says on sidelines of Beijing’s Xiangshan Forum