Vice president-elect Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) yesterday met Chinese Vice Premier Li Keqiang (李克強) at the Boao Asia Forum in Hainan, China, where the pair reportedly agreed on the need to address a variety of cross-strait issues.
Wu, who is accompanying a delegation of about 60 officials, is attending the forum in the capacity as the highest consultant for the Cross-Straits Common Market Foundation.
During their meeting, Wu and Li are said to have agreed on the need to establish a mechanism for the control and oversight of insurance and bonds. The two reportedly also agreed to complete in the first half of this year an accord on cross-strait insurance policies, as well as begin negotiations on a cross-strait currency clearing accord.
Photo: Peng Hsien-chun, Taipei Times
Sources said Li agreed to increased imports of Taiwanese agricultural and fish products to China. Li added that Chinese investments in Taiwan were not for the sole benefit of Taiwanese markets, but were for the mutual benefit of both sides of the Taiwan Strait.
Through the expansion of the Chinese market, Taiwan will be able to expand into international markets, Li said.
“We will also [endeavor] to find a solution for equal negotiations [between Taiwan and China] regarding Taiwan’s international space,” he said.
Meanwhile, China’s Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) Director Wang Yi (王毅) hosted an outdoor banquet for the Taiwanese delegation after the Wu-Li meeting.
Wang began the banquet by welcoming Wu, saying: “The South China Sea and China welcome you all, especially Mr Wu Den-yih, who will soon be assuming more important responsibilities.”
Wang also said economic cooperation was still the priority for cross-strait relations this year.
Cross-strait relations are taking a new, multi-directional development and we must also think hard about how to maximize benefits for citizens across the Strait, Wang said, adding that the two sides would start “seeing more difficulties” when working together on deepening economic cooperation.
“I think that an important and essential focal point for resolving any problems is maintaining, as well as fortifying, mutual political trust,” Wang said. “By so doing, we can promote smoother cross-strait economic cooperation, and as we continue to solve economic problems, it will provide a more solid guarantee of further developments in cross-strait relations.”
The Boao Forum has not only provided a chance for interaction for businesspeople from both sides of the Strait, it has also become the most important platform of dialogue between high-ranking cross-strait administrators, Wang said.
While Wu did not make any public comments during the banquet, the head of the Taiwanese delegation, former foreign minister Fredrick Chien (錢復), praised Wang, saying he had “contributed the most” toward promoting cross-strait relations.
It is “very good to have you [Wang]” as the director of the TAO, Chien said.
Regarding the Wu-Li meeting, Chien said: “Despite the fact that this was the first time both men met, it was more like they were meeting again after having been separated for a long time. They were so sincere in their conversation and their deep insights into the issues, it just gave the feeling that they were truly thinking of solutions to cross-strait issues. I felt very honored to have been able to observe the meeting.”
Most of the Taiwanese delegation attended the banquet, including Cross-Straits Common Market Foundation chairman Chan Huo-sheng (詹火生), as well as Taiwan Stock Exchange Corp chairman Schive Chi (薛琦).
On the Chinese side, in addition to Wang, former China Banking Regulatory Commission chairman Liu Mingkang (劉明康), Central Huijin Investment Co chairperson Lee Jiange (李劍閣) and Cosco Group chairman Ma Zehua (馬澤華) were among those who attended the banquet.
Translated by Jake Chung, Staff Writer
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
LANDSLIDES POSSIBLE: The agency advised the public to avoid visiting mountainous regions due to more expected aftershocks and rainfall from a series of weather fronts A series of earthquakes over the past few days were likely aftershocks of the April 3 earthquake in Hualien County, with further aftershocks to be expected for up to a year, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Based on the nation’s experience after the quake on Sept. 21, 1999, more aftershocks are possible over the next six months to a year, the agency said. A total of 103 earthquakes of magnitude 4 on the local magnitude scale or higher hit Hualien County from 5:08pm on Monday to 10:27am yesterday, with 27 of them exceeding magnitude 5. They included two, of magnitude
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique