Lee Kuan-yew to visit next month to help restart cross-strait talks

Singapore's Senior Minister Lee Kuan-yew (李光耀) is to visit Taiwan next month to assist with future talks between Taipei and Beijing, the United Daily News reported yesterday.

Unnamed sources at the Presidential Office confirmed that President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) is planning to invite Lee but details of his visit have yet been worked out.

Singapore officials declined to comment on the planned trip when contacted.

"At this present moment I am not aware of such a trip," Lee's press secretary said.

In Taipei, Chang Chun-hsiung (張俊雄), the Secretary-General of the Presidential Office said Chen welcomed Lee's visit but did not say when he would be coming or whether he would serve as a cross-strait mediator.

"It's not in my role to say whether Lee would act as a mediator," Chang said.

Lee, who was instrumental in pushing for the historic meeting between top envoys from Taipei and Beijing in 1993 in Singapore, is expected to discuss cross-strait issues with Chen.

The Singaporean leader has maintained close relations with leaders on both sides of the Taiwan Strait.

He use to shuttle between Taiwan and China several times a year with the blessing of former Presidents Chiang Ching-kuo (蔣經國) and Lee Teng-hui (李登輝).

However, the two Lees had a fallout in 1994 over personal difference and Lee Kwan-yew has not visited Taiwan since then.

Lee urged Taiwan and China to reopen talks this year after meeting Chinese leaders in June, saying that it would be dangerous to drag out the current stalemate.

Relations across the Taiwan Strait soured after former president Lee Teng-hui's "state-to-state" remark last year.

The words were deemed by China to be a departure from the "one China" principle, and Beijing launched military exercises to intimidate the island.

He met Chen four times when the former Taipei City mayor traveled to Singapore during the period 1994-1998.