The third great war has already been announced

Euphoria presided over the atmosphere of the long-awaited 20th Congress of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), the five-yearly "conclave" at which the foundations of its imminent future are laid. The secrecy with which these events are held everywhere and especially in Beijing makes it impossible to know what debates and probably brawls took place during the sessions, but the overall picture of what happened is optimistic. China is reaffirming its status as the first superpower, its desire to progress in socialism and modernity and, most worryingly, its intention to consummate territorial reintegration with the recovery of the island of Taiwan by resorting to armed force if necessary.

Xi Jinping's re-election for the third time, skipping the established maximum of two terms, is tantamount to opening the way to perpetuating him in power, it shows that there will be no substantial changes in both domestic and foreign policy, that the country will continue to arm itself and expand its international market as the main guarantee for its development and world hegemony. Amid all the verbiage that usually surrounds these ideas and projects, however, what is most worrying and disturbing is the renewed threat of resorting to arms for the reincorporation of Taiwan, which has been cut off from the mainland state for many years.

Xi Jinping's pledge, which is more threat than promise, coincides with recent warnings by President Joe Biden that the United States will support the Taiwanese government in maintaining its independence against the threat from China. Taiwan in recent years has been able to rely on a powerful, well-equipped and well-trained military, but with an enemy as powerful as the Chinese, separated by the Strait, its security is always vulnerable.

Taiwan, on the other hand, has become an industrial power that, despite lacking diplomatic relations with virtually all other countries, has the best markets for its IT products, some of which are essential for automobile production, such as semiconductors, of which it is the leading producer. Taiwan is no longer just the breakaway, pro-independence island of the Chinese empire, but also one of the main, albeit diplomatically unrecognised, competitors in its bid to establish itself as a leading trading power with aspirations to exert greater influence on the international stage.