Stop the bullying

China under President Xi Jinping is turning into an international bully. Canada has felt its sting, with the arbitrary detention of two Canadians in the Huawei extradition case. Now, much more ominously, democratic Taiwan faces a new threat of military force from Beijing.

By one generous interpretation, there wasn’t much new in Xi’s message to Taiwan on Wednesday. China has always insisted Taiwan is an integral part of the country, that it opposes any moves toward independence, and it won’t rule out using armed force to achieve eventual unification.

But emphasis and tone are everything in this decades-old dispute, and Xi’s decision to issue such a blunt, public warning speaks volumes. He is the voice of a new, more assertive and increasingly authoritarian China that is flexing its muscles all over the world, including further isolating Taiwan.

There were once hopes that China and Taiwan might grow together, as trade between the two flourished and China gradually liberalized to the point that Taiwanese might trust that their freedoms would be respected in a unified country.

That’s pretty much dead now. Taiwan, with its 23 million people, has grown into a vibrant democracy since it liberalized in the 1990s, but China has taken another path. Under Xi’s rule, in particular, it has clamped down on all kinds of political dissent and reaffirmed its determination to maintain a oneparty system.

That, of course, makes it a lot less likely that Taiwanese people will support any kind of unification in the foreseeable future. And when China insists on the formula of “one country, two systems,” they can see how that has worked out in Hong Kong, where Beijing has steadily stifled democracy.

If China seriously wants to promote unification, it should stop the bullying. And it should stop threatening force to solve a political and diplomatic issue.