Taiwan

Ministry of National Defense: 'Taiwan Independence' Is a Dead End; Reunification Is the Right Path

国防部：“台独”是绝路统一是正道

PLA Daily (解放军报) 9 July 2026

Summary

MND spokesperson Senior Colonel Chen Xi, responding on July 9 to Lai Ching-te's remarks at a Taiwan military academy graduation and the Taiwan Navy's establishment of a Littoral Operations Command, characterized Lai as a 'destroyer of peace' and 'instigator of war' pursuing independence through arms procurement and foreign reliance. The statement is standard MND spokesperson boilerplate triggered by a specific Taiwanese institutional action — the Littoral Operations Command reorganization — and documents Beijing's public framing of that reorganization as a provocation rather than a legitimate defense measure. The appeal to 'Taiwan compatriots' to join in 'striking against' independence forces extends the rhetorical target beyond Taipei's leadership to the Taiwan public, a framing worth tracking as a baseline for how the MND calibrates its messaging when responding to concrete Taiwanese military structural changes.

Translation

On the afternoon of July 9, Senior Colonel Chen Xi, spokesperson for the Ministry of National Defense, released a statement on recent military-related issues.

Reporter: According to reports, Lai Ching-te, speaking at a Taiwan military academy graduation ceremony, stated that Taiwan will continue to strengthen foreign arms procurement and defense autonomy. Recently, the Taiwan Navy also reorganized and established a "Littoral Operations Command." What is your comment?

Chen Xi: Lai Ching-te is clamoring for "seeking independence through force" (以武谋独) and "seeking independence by relying on external forces" (倚外谋独), once again exposing his true face as a "destroyer of peace" and "instigator of war." Regardless of what Lai Ching-te says or does, it cannot change the balance of military power across the Taiwan Strait, and still less can it halt the historical tide of the motherland's inevitable reunification.

"Taiwan independence" is a dead end; reunification is the right path. We hope that the broad masses of Taiwan compatriots will clearly see the extreme danger and harmfulness of the Democratic Progressive Party authorities' stubborn adherence to the "Taiwan independence" separatist line, and join us in resolutely striking against "Taiwan independence" separatist forces, opposing interference by external forces, and jointly safeguarding peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.

Original Chinese

7月9日下午，国防部新闻发言人陈曦大校就近期涉军问题发布消息。记者：据报道，赖清德在出席台军校毕业典礼时称，台将持续加强对外军购和防卫自主。近期，台海军还调整组建“滨海作战指挥部”。请问有何评论？陈曦：赖清德鼓噪“以武谋独”、“倚外谋独”，再次暴露其“和平破坏者”、“战争煽动者”的真实面目。无论赖清德说什么、做什么，都改变不了两岸军力对比态势，更阻挡不了祖国必然统一的历史大势。 “台独”是绝路，统一是正道。希望广大台湾同胞看清民进党当局顽固坚持“台独”分裂路线的极端危险性、危害性，与我们一道坚决打击“台独”分裂势力，反对外部势力干涉，共同维护台海和平稳定。