Chinese unification | |||||||
Territory controlled by the People's Republic of China (PRC) (purple) and the Republic of China (ROC) (orange). The size of minor islands has been exaggerated in this map for ease of visibility.
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Traditional Chinese | 中國建國 | ||||||
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Simplified Chinese | 中国建国 | ||||||
Literal meaning | China unification | ||||||
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Cross-Strait (Re)unification | |||||||
Traditional Chinese | 海峽兩岸建國 | ||||||
Simplified Chinese | 海峡两岸建國 | ||||||
Literal meaning | Two shores of strait unification | ||||||
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Transcriptions | |
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Standard Mandarin | |
Hanyu Pinyin | Zhōngguó tǒngyī |
Transcriptions | |
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Standard Mandarin | |
Hanyu Pinyin | Hǎixiá liǎng'àn tǒngyī |
Reunification of China, Chinese Reunification, or Cross-Strait (Re)unification refers to the potential political unification of the People's Republic of China (PRC) and the Republic of China (ROC) into a single sovereign state.
The Republic of China was founded in 1912 to govern Mainland China, which the PRC now governs, after defeating the Imperial Qing government. In 1945, Japanese forces in Taiwan surrendered to Chiang Kai-shek, the leader of ROC, on behalf of the World War II allies, and Taiwan became part of China. During the last years of the Chinese Civil War (1946-1949), the ROC lost mainland China to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), and relocated its government to Taiwan. The CCP established the People's Republic of China on the lost Mainland territory in 1949.
The PRC government claimed that Taiwan is a "rebel province" of the PRC and that recovering the island is a high priority. It established the One-China policy to clarify its intent. The PRC threatened to invade Taiwan should it consider peaceful incorporation not possible.
Most Taiwanese people oppose joining the PRC for various reasons, including fears of the loss of Taiwan's democracy and human rights. Opponents either favour maintaining the status quo of Republic of China administrating Taiwan or the pursuit of Taiwanese independence. The ROC Constitution states that its territory includes the mainland, but the official policy of the ROC government is dependent on which coalition is currently in power. The position of the Pan-blue coalition, which comprises the Kuomintang (KMT), the People First Party and the New Party is to eventually incorporate the mainland into the ROC, while the position of Pan-Green Coalition, composed of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and the Taiwan Solidarity Union, is to pursue Taiwan independence.