Chinese leader Xi Jinping kicked off a twice-a-decade Communist Party congress Sunday by reiterating that China will never renounce the use of force in resolving “the Taiwan question,” while also warning that his country must be prepared for "strong winds and high waves and even dangerous storms.”
"Resolving the Taiwan question is a matter for the Chinese, a matter that must be resolved by the Chinese," Xi told the gathering of around 2,300 delegates from across the country inside Beijing’s massive Great Hall of the People.
In a speech that lasted just over 100 minutes — far shorter than his nearly 3½ hour address at the 2017 congress — Xi said China would “continue to strive for peaceful reunification,” but added that it “will never promise to renounce the use of force” and reserved “the option of taking all measures necessary.”