CHINA PERSPECTIVE

Beijing orchestrates coverage of the Xi-Cheng Li-wun meeting as civilizational communion rather than political maneuver. The South China Morning Post publishes three articles building a crescendo narrative: first Cheng's Shanghai visit showcasing Chinese AI, then the historic Xi meeting, then the KMT leader's post-meeting remarks. Xi declares that "peace is a shared wish" and asserts "total confidence" in cross-strait reunification—language blending sentiment with political program. The SCMP notes Cheng suggests "Taiwan should learn from the mainland's AI," a statement unthinkable five years ago revealing how far the KMT has recalibrated its position. China presents this first Xi meeting with a sitting KMT leader in a decade as normalizing a dialogue that only the ruling DPP refuses. The framing is clear: reunification is inevitable; only timing remains negotiable.