Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, meets with a delegation of the Chinese Kuomintang (KMT) party led by its chairwoman Cheng Li-wun in Beijing, capital of China, April 10, 2026. (Xinhua/Xie Huanchi)

Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, met on Friday with Cheng Li-wun, chairwoman of the Chinese Kuomintang (KMT) party, in the first meeting between the leaders of the two parties in a decade, calling for joint efforts to promote cross-Strait peace and oppose "Taiwan independence."

Meeting Cheng in the Great Hall of the People in central Beijing, Xi stressed that no matter how the international landscape and the situation across the Taiwan Strait may evolve, the overarching trend toward the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation will not change, and the prevailing momentum bringing the Chinese on both sides of the Strait closer together will not change.

Xi said that people on both sides of the Strait hope for peace and tranquility, improved cross-Strait relations, and better lives.

"This is a responsibility that the CPC and the KMT cannot shirk, and also a driving force for the two parties to work together," he said.

The Taiwan question is a scar left over by a full-blown civil war fought between the forces led by the CPC and the KMT about eight decades ago. In 1949, the remnants of the defeated KMT retreated to Taiwan, and the People's Republic of China was founded under the leadership of the CPC.

The unresolved civil war and foreign interference have left the two sides of the Strait in a prolonged state of political confrontation. However, the fact that Taiwan is an inalienable part of China's territory has never changed.

On Friday, Xi stressed that people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait belong to the Chinese nation.

The Chinese people of all ethnic groups including Taiwan compatriots, Xi said, have jointly forged the shared belief that "the territory cannot be divided, the country cannot be destabilized, the nation cannot be separated, and the civilization cannot be interrupted."

Xi expressed the willingness to work with all political parties in Taiwan, including the KMT, as well as groups and people from all sectors, to strengthen exchanges and dialogue, promote peace across the Strait, improve the well-being of the people and advance national rejuvenation, on the basis of the common political foundation of adhering to the 1992 Consensus and opposing "Taiwan independence."

Wang Huning, Cai Qi and other officials attended the meeting.