Chinese foundation invites Taiwanese to fruit talks

A Chinese civic group invited Taiwan's private organizations to meetings on July 27 to discuss the nation's fruit sales to China, China's Ministry of Commerce said.

China's cross-strait economic and trade exchange foundation "welcomes" Taiwan's private organizations, including the Farmers' Association of Taiwan Province (台灣省農會), to travel to China for the talks, said Li Shuilin (李水林), chief of the foundation.

"We shouldn't delay it any further," Li said in a statement posted on Commerce Ministry's Web site on Saturday. The foundation welcomes any organization Taiwan authorities commission to join the meetings, Li said in the statement.

China said in May it plans to scrap import tariffs on 15 Taiwanese fruits. The announcement came with President Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) government under pressure to improve ties with China, the country's largest trading partner and political foe. Farming families, many of which are Chen supporters, account for about 15 percent of the nation's population of 23 million.

The Chinese foundation is a non-profit organization for promoting economic and trade exchanges with Taiwan, according to an article by China's official Xinhua news agency published on Jan. 6 last year.

"We welcome the statement from the mainland," Cho Jung-tai(卓榮泰), spokesman for Taiwan's cabinet, said by phone yesterday. "We hope talks can start on July 27."

Lee Ching-lung (李金龍), Taiwan's agriculture minister, said on June 27 the Taiwan government will authorize the External Trade Development Council (外貿協會) to hold talks with China about the fruit import plan. The government-supported council organizes trade shows and helps promote Taiwanese products overseas.

China's government also said on May 3 that it will increase the number of Taiwanese fruits that can be imported to 18 from 12.