The Taiwan Question and PRC Politics of Memory towards Japan

Abstract

This paper discusses the place of Taiwan in PRC’s foreign policy and politics of memory from the perspective of PRC’s raising pressure on Japan and the necessity to solve the Taiwan problem. The Taiwan issue is an important topic for the PRC. Taiwan is still perceived by the Chinese as a reminder of the unfinished civil war and a divided China. The issue of reunification became especially acute during the reign of Xi Jinping, when the need to return Taiwan "to its homeland" became one of the main tasks of the "Great Revival of the Chinese Nation". However, the leadership of Taiwan does not want to lose its de facto independence from the mainland. Besides, the unification of the island with China is not welcomed by other major powers in the region, in particular Japan. Moreover, deep economic, political and cultural interaction has been established between Taiwan and Japan. From the point of view of mainland China, Taiwan cannot have either economic or political independence. To achieve reunification with the island, the PRC resorts to memory politics. The paper analyzes the origins of the Taiwan issue, as well as the positions of the PRC, Japan and Taiwan. The features of the politics of memory of the PRC, which determine the use of memory politics as a foreign policy instrument in relation to Japan, are exposed and analyzed. It is concluded that PRC politics of memory towards Japan is characterized by frequent appeals to the events of the Sino-Japanese war (1931-1945) and the period of Japanese occupation of Taiwan. The PRC claims its right to return the island "to its homeland" as a result of victory in the war and points out that Japan has no moral right to intervene in this issue.