In a speech reported in Chinese state media, Chen Xu, deputy minister of the Central United Front Work Department and director of the State Council’s Overseas Chinese Affairs Office, described how Beijing wants to mobilize overseas Chinese communities. He framed his remarks as study of a July 2026 instruction on overseas Chinese affairs from Xi Jinping, which he said sets the direction for the work.
Chen argued that engagement with the roughly 60 million overseas Chinese and 40 million returned overseas Chinese and relatives serves several national goals, among them economic modernization, cultural influence and “a community with a shared future for mankind.” His most politically sensitive passage concerned Taiwan. He said overseas Chinese have long conducted publicity, solidarity and protest activities against “Taiwan independence” abroad, and that separatist forces are colluding with foreign backers, making unification harder. He called for strengthening the “Chinese nation community” consciousness, combining “unity and struggle,” and squeezing the overseas space for what he termed hostile separatist forces while building up pro-unification forces worldwide.
Chen also said overseas Chinese have supported China’s bilateral and multilateral ties and the Belt and Road Initiative, and should act as a “golden ribbon” and “bridge of friendship” between China and their host countries.
On organization, he stressed that the Party’s centralized leadership must run through all overseas Chinese work. United Front departments at every level, he said, should coordinate ministries, community groups, universities, financial institutions and companies, under unified Party committee leadership.
Chen acknowledged challenges, including weakening ties to China among younger overseas Chinese and disunity among community groups. He also urged overseas Chinese to obey local laws. The speech reflects how Beijing links diaspora outreach to its sovereignty and foreign-policy goals, and the language on countering Taiwan independence abroad is likely to draw scrutiny from host governments.
Source: Study Times, October 9, 2026
https://www.studytimes.cn/lltt/202610/t20261009_92572.html