An invasion of Taiwan is a dead end

OPINION:

The following are excerpts from “An Open Letter to Chairman Xi Jinping, Respectful Greetings for the Year of the Horse,” Feb. 21, 2026.

Dear Respected Chairman Xi,

Hello! I am a mere citizen of Taiwan. I hold neither office, title nor rank, nor do I have power. I also don’t have any guns. I cannot subvert your regime, so we ought to be able to live in peace with one another. But the guns and artillery you command are numerous beyond counting, and seemingly ready to fire upon Taiwan at any moment. This leaves me unable to go about my days in peace, such that I feel compelled to ask you a few questions.

First, if you were to launch an invasion of Taiwan in the name of “unification,” other than the devastation which would befall Taiwan, what good would come to the Chinese Communist Party and citizens of the People’s Republic of China (PRC), which you lead?…

On the Taiwan question, your party has repeatedly declared that “Taiwan has been the sovereign territory of China since ancient times.” This is an obvious lie. Taiwan’s indigenous people have a history of inhabiting the island for more than 6,000 years, whereas your state was only founded in 1949.

Taiwan was occupied by the Manchu Qing Empire in 1683, until it was ceded to Japan in 1895, a total of 212 years. This absolutely cannot be regarded as the “sovereign territory of China since ancient times.” Most of the territory of Ukraine was ruled by the Mongols between 1240 and 1362, over 120 years. If one were to say that Ukraine has been the “sovereign territory of Mongolia since ancient times,” that would, of course, be a joke.

In 1928, Mao Zedong clearly advocated for Taiwanese independence and the establishment of a “Republic of Taiwan.” And again in 1936 in Yanan… your own party… didn’t consider Taiwan to be part of China, yet later revised this to “Taiwan has been the sovereign territory of China since ancient times.” It appears that your party is accustomed to distorting historical facts according to political requirements.

Your party also likes to go on about the 1943 Cairo Declaration, which actually stated that sovereignty over Taiwan would be returned to the Republic of China (ROC) after World War II, not to the PRC…

The Cairo Declaration’s advocacy for Taiwan to return to the ROC… was a way of paying tribute to the enormous sacrifices made by the KMT during the War of Resistance… [in which] your party… merely feigned participation. You, of course, have no qualifications to be “awarded” sovereignty over Taiwan. Your party didn’t actively resist the Japanese, but you brutalized innumerable KMT war heroes after founding your state. Only since then have you unceasingly taken credit for resisting Japan in your propaganda, spreading hatred of Japan and even staging high-profile memorials of “Victory Against Japan Day”… to confuse the public, rewrite history and obtain sovereignty over Taiwan. This is, in fact, a deception of all Chinese people…

Just 30 years after signing the [Sino-British Joint Declaration regarding Hong Kong] in 1984 with Britain, your government announced it to be a historical document with no binding force whatsoever. We are more than 80 years removed from the Cairo Declaration of 1943 and the Potsdam Declaration of 1945. Certainly both are “historical documents.” Yet your government maintains that these continue to have binding force. Is this not a double standard and quite unreasonable?

Your government furthermore proclaims UNGA Resolution 2758 to have granted sovereignty over Taiwan to China. This is also a claim which dupes the public. In reality, this resolution only agrees for your government to replace Chiang Kai-Shek’s representatives at the United Nations. Not a single word of it mentions Taiwan…

Therefore, are you not deceiving people by claiming that “Unification with Taiwan is for the Great Rejuvenation of the Chinese Nation?” Isn’t the real reason your party insists upon unifying with Taiwan because Taiwan has already achieved popular sovereignty? That you have to snuff out the Taiwanese, so that Chinese people won’t see us as a role model and demand that power be restored to them?

Respected Chairman Xi, Leninist parties have already been swept into the trash bin of history… Why does your party cling to the old ways in China?

“Popular sovereignty” is already the universal value of progress. Why does your party put up such a desperate struggle and refuse to admit defeat?

If your party insists upon invading Taiwan to extend the life of one-party dictatorship, the doom of your country and party will be at hand. If you adapt to the great trend of popular sovereignty, lift the ban on political parties and advance democracy, your party might still win the support of voters under a democratic system. To phrase things differently, to invade Taiwan is a dead end; the right path is to return power to the people. Which path shall you choose? I respectfully ask you to think carefully and decide wisely.

Lastly, I respectfully wish Chairman Xi good health and a Happy New Year. Regarding an invasion of Taiwan, rein in the horse before it goes over the precipice. On the question of opening up democracy, you could make unparalleled contributions to the nation. This is what we most hope for!

• Robert Tsao is the founder of United Microelectronics Corporation.