In 2011,Xi Jinping instructedcadres to "make full use" ofMazu for promotion of Chinese unification.[8] Temples in Taiwan, especially in rural areas, have been the most prominent targets forinfluence operations as they are meeting grounds for prominent local figures and financial donations to temples remain unregulated.[9][10][11][12] The Chinese government sponsors religious trips to China for Taiwanese as part of an influence campaign.[13]
According toSinologist Gerry Groot, the CCP's abrogation ofone country, two systems in Hong Kong following the2019–2020 Hong Kong protests "was noted in Taiwan, where it made the work of the tiny minority of pro-unification activists even harder and reinforced the skepticism of others regarding the value of CCP promises."[15] Others have also perceived its failure to persuade Taiwanese.[16]
In 2023, Taiwan'sMainland Affairs Council stated in a report that the CCP's united front efforts in Taiwan through "cognitive warfare" were increasing.[18]
During the run-up to the2024 Taiwanese presidential election, the All-China Federation of Taiwan Compatriots coordinated editorial attacks againstDemocratic Progressive Party presidential candidateLai Ching-te, framing him as "pro-war"; Lai later won the election.[19] In November 2023, Taiwanese prosecutors investigated individuals accused of recruiting Taiwanese tourists on trips to mainland China paid for by theTaiwan Affairs Office, in which they met with representatives of theUnited Front Work Department (UFWD) and were urged to vote forpan-Blue candidates.[20][21] According to a Taiwan security official, more than 1,000 Taiwanese local officials had visited China on junkets in 2023.[22] ALiberty Times investigation showed that almost 30% of the 456 borough chiefs in Taipei had taken trips in 2023 to mainland China subsidized by the Chinese government.[23]
In 2025, Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council stated thatDouyin andXiaohongshu are vectors for pro-unification propaganda.[24]
The UFWD sponsors paid trips and summer camps to mainland China for Taiwanese youth. The trips are reported to promote pro-Chinese unification sentiment.[26]
Triads andHongmen associations in Taiwan are also increasingly vectors of CCP influence operations.[27][28] Taiwan'sMinistry of the Interior stated that the MSS operates an "external liaison office" inXiamen which communicates with and provides financial assistance to organized criminal groups in Taiwan.[29]
In February 2025, Taiwan'sMinistry of Education barred two schools affiliated with the UFWD,Huaqiao University andJinan University, from conducting exchanges in Taiwan.[30] The ministry also stated it would no longer recognize qualifications from schools associated with the UFWD.[31] The same month, the same ministry banned exchanges with theSeven Sons of National Defence.[32] In March 2025, Taiwanese presidentLai Ching-te gave a policy speech in which he promised greater efforts to crack down on PRC espionage and infiltration in Taiwan.[33]
^"Notes from Central Taiwan: Imaginings of another Taiwan".Taipei Times. 8 May 2023.Archived from the original on 28 June 2023. Retrieved30 April 2024.Today we know terms like "united front" in the context of Chinese imperialism and expansionism, but in the 1930s the term had another meaning: it encapsulated the desire of Asians struggling to form a "united front" against external imperialism.
