The chairwoman of the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC), Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), yesterday said that before the Cabinet reshuffle in late January, the MAC would present the Executive Yuan with a draft plan to allow parts of China's service sector to invest in Taiwan.
Tsai also said that it is likely the existing Taiwan-Hong Kong aviation treaty -- already extended once from June 12 to Dec. 31 -- will be extended again before a new one is hammered out.
Further details of the investment scheme, the first stage in the MAC's plan to allow Chinese capital into Taiwan, will not be released until they have been reviewed by the existing Cabinet, but the government will await the convening of the new Cabinet in February before granting official approval.
Tsai made the remarks at the MAC's year-end news conference yesterday. She said that the MAC has spent a year working on this stage of the plan.
Tsai also answered a question about the soon-to-expire Taiwan-Hong Kong air travel pact, saying that the existing pact would be extended before a new pact is signed.
"Since we need more time to reach agreement on the new pact, the extension model will be the temporary solution," she said.
Negotiations on the pact have not begun, as the two sides cannot agree on the status to be accorded each other. Taiwan has held out for the talks to be conducted between the two governments, while Beijing insists on using the 1996 model, whereby the airlines on both sides were authorized to negotiate the matter.
Tsai remarked that a fundamental change in cross-strait relations took place this year. She said the results of the Dec. 1 elections were the key factor. "The results reveal the new direction of public opinion, which craves domestic stability and good cross-strait relations."
She called on China to accept the election results with pragmatism, saying "Official interaction between the two sides is unavoidable if they hope to develop real, stable cross-strait relations."
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