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Samuel Finetti
The Chinese president praises the country’s economic growth and reiterates Beijing’s position on the island, a few hours after the end of massive military exercises
Xi Jinping speaks to one billion four hundred million Chinese, but also to the rest of the world, to summarize China’s “great successes” in 2025 and announce the prosperity prospects of the country he has led since 2013. As every year since then, the president – who is also general secretary of the Communist Party and president of the Party’s Central Military Commission – he addresses his fellow citizens directly for his end-of-year speech.
And he makes his debut, this time, thanking them while communicating the conclusion of the fourteenth «five-year plan for economic and social development»: «In the last five years, we have carried out our commitment with resourcefulness and determination, overcoming numerous difficulties and challenges. We have achieved the objectives of the Plan e made solid progress in China’s new path of modernization».
Again: «Our economic strength, our scientific and technological capabilities, our defense capabilities and our national strength have reached new heights». Then, the great events of the last twelve months, starting from the “solemn commemoration” of the 80 years since the “victory in the war of resistance of the Chinese people against Japanese aggression” (the Second World War, ndr), celebrated with the grandiose parade of military vehicles on Tiananmen Square last September 3, in the presence of leaders from all the countries friends of Beijing – Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong-un in the lead. «The glory of our victory will shine in the pages of history», underlines the New Helmsman.
But it’s not all rosy: «Today the world is going through changes and turbulence, and some regions are still devastated by war. China always stands on the right side of history and is ready to cooperate with all countries to promote world peace and development and build a community with a shared future for humanity.”
Unless it’s about Taiwan, the democratic “rebel” island that Beijing considers part of its territory and says it is ready to annex by force if the prospects of peaceful reunification ever fade. «We Chinese, on both sides of the Taiwan Strait, share a bond of blood and kinship. The reunification of our motherland is unstoppable», recalls Xi.
Words that arrive a few hours before the end of massive military exercises that the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) conducted around the island between Monday and yesterday. There «Justice Mission 2025» interrupted eight months of calm in the waters of the Taiwan Strait: the Chinese Armed Forces launched 27 missiles in the waters to the north and south-east of the island, over 90 boats from the Navy and the Mandarin Coast Guard sailed in the same waters, 77 military aircraft flew over the area and, in around thirty cases, crossed the median line of the Strait.
All accompanied by videos released by state media and statements with less than conciliatory tones: “Recently, external forces have repeatedly crossed the line on the Taiwan issue, recklessly attempting to encourage separatist forces for ‘Taiwan independence,’” a Chinese Defense Ministry spokesperson said Monday.
The objective of this show of force: to prepare to detect and strike enemy fighters, ships and submarines and demonstrate that the PLA is capable of cutting the island off from any line of external help in the event of conflict (more specifically, Japanese and US forces stationed in Japan and the Pacific). It should be noted that the “mission”, concluded “successfully” according to Beijing, began 11 days after Washington announced the supply of an 11 billion dollar arms package to Taipei.
Donald Trump said few words about the exercise. On Monday, he responded to a reporter: “China has been doing this for 20, 25 years.” In April, the US president will make an official visit to Beijing, and more than one analyst predicts that Xi will try to convince him to officially oppose Taiwan’s independenceor at least to return to the position that Washington has long held: no direct support for the island’s independence.
Returning to the Chinese leader’s end-of-year speech, Xi continued by repeating that “only a strong Communist Party can make our country strong” and assuring that China will continue to take steps forward to “write a new chapter in the history of our miracle”. AND he concluded with a wish: «May all your dreams come true». Its looks across the Taiwan Strait.
December 31, 2025 (changed December 31, 2025 | 3:00 pm)
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