damn.
Why on earth would they seriously consider reunification. Taiwanese citizens are more productive and have a far better quality of life than their mainland counterparts.
China cannot invade for the forseeable future even if Ameria decides it isnt interested anymore, and if America is around then China has no hope in hell anyway.
Sounds more like the PM/President is saying this to get the opposition onside in order to get more done.

This is really bad news if true. Taiwan companies have almost a complete monopoly on producing electronic circuit boards in the world.
This would make it very difficult for our defense industry.
However, I agree with everything Nick says. Taiwanese people have a higher standard of living than Europeans. Why would they give it up?

1. internal politics. President Chen wishes to split the opposition, which controls parliament.
2. President Chen is trying to defuse the uproar caused by the Japanese declaring Taiwan a defense interest.

Maybe, too, Taiwan is just trying to ease all that Chinese military buildup just across the Taiwan Strait.

The few people from Taiwan that I know consider themselves Chinese. They see Taiwanese separatism as ‘looking for trouble’. They like the status quo of nominally being part of China, but enjoying Western liberties.
I think the “unificators” are looking at a EU kind of gradual unification. It means little good for the US, but I don’t see the US doing much about it in the near future. There’s not much it can do, anyway.

North Korea and security probaly play some part in this.