Sun Yat-sen champion of national integrity, unity: Xi

BEIJING - Xi Jinping, General Secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, said on Friday that revolutionary pioneer Sun Yat-sen had staunchly championed the integrity of the country and unity of the nation, at a gathering in Beijing to commemorate the 150th anniversary of Sun Yat-sen's birth.

"Sun Yat-sen unequivocally opposed any remarks or actions that attempted to split the country or the nation," Xi, who is also Chinese president and chairman of the Central Military Commission, said in his speech.

Quoting Sun, Xi said that united, the people of the entire country benefit; disunited, people suffer.

It is the shared conviction of Chinese that China is a unified country, and it is this belief that ensures the continuation of the nation as a whole, Xi said, quoting Sun.

To achieve the complete reunification of the motherland is in the fundamental interest of the Chinese nation and it is common aspiration as well as sacred duty of all Chinese, Xi said.

The peaceful development of cross-Strait relations is the correct path toward peace across the Strait, shared development and the improved well-being of compatriots from both sides of the Taiwan Strait, Xi noted.

"We are ready to engage with any political Party, organization or individual from Taiwan, as long as they acknowledge the 1992 Consensus and recognize that both the mainland and Taiwan belong to one China, no matter what they may have supported in the past," Xi said.

Xi called on compatriots from both sides across the Taiwan Strait and Chinese all across the globe to unite and oppose "Taiwan independence" secessionist forces, saying the future of compatriots of both the mainland and Taiwan is closely intertwined with the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.

China experienced more than 100 years of upheaval and struggle and this was still very fresh in the memories of Chinese, Xi said.

"It is our solemn commitment to the history and the people" to safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity, and to make sure that the country is never torn apart again, Xi said.

"Any attempt to split the country will be resolutely opposed by all Chinese people," Xi said, vowing "we'll never allow anyone, any organization or political Party to rip out any part of our territory at any time or in any form."