Ending a month of secretive planning and media speculation, the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday announced that KMT Chairman Lien Chan (
The KMT also announced the itinerary of Lien's trip, although it remained uncertain whether he will report to the government before his departure.
"This trip will be the first time that the leaders of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the KMT have met in 56 years. I will candidly, and honestly, exchange views with CCP Chairman Hu Jintao (
PHOTO: AP
The most notable feature of the itinerary for the eight days and seven nights that Lien will spend in China is the planned meeting with Hu on April 29.
The trip, which the KMT has nicknamed Lien's "journey of peace," will take Lien and his delegation to four Chinese cities: Nanjing, Beijing, Xi'an and Shanghai, in that order, KMT Secretary-General Lin Feng-cheng (林豐正) said in a report delivered at the committee meeting yesterday.
The delegation will leave for China on April 26, and will spend the next day visiting the Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum in Nanjing. On April 28, Lien will head to Beijing to meet with standing committee members of China's Politburo, as well as Jia Qinglin (
The KMT has scheduled the Lien-Hu summit for the afternoon of April 29, after Lien is to deliver a speech to students at Peking University.
"[During the meeting] it is planned that there will be constructive dialogue about the peaceful development of cross-strait relations," Lin said in his report, emphasizing that the talks are expected to have an "important, meaningful effect" on the peaceful stabilization of the cross-strait situation.
After meeting with Hu, Lien and the KMT delegation will head to Xi'an on April 30, where Lien will visit his ancestral home and head to Shanghai on May 1. After giving a speech to the Taiwanese business community in Xian, the entire entourage will head back to Taiwan on May 3.
While Lin did not say yesterday what results the Lien-Hu meeting might produce, local experts have speculated that the CCP might grant Lien some sort of political boon, such as the withdrawal of the missiles it has aimed at Taiwan.
More than 100 members of the local media are expected to follow the KMT entourage to China to chronicle Lien's meeting with Hu.
Lien said yesterday he believes that if the meeting with Hu takes place under the condition that both sides are willing to work toward mutual benefits, and with peace, goodwill and sincerity forming the basic principles of the discussion, they will be able to explore a number of topics in depth.
"There are certain differences between [Taiwan and China], and there are also a certain number of similarities. The correct attitude [to take] is to seek a way to co-exist despite our differences while working to expand the effects of our similarities," Lien said.
A number of members of the KMT's Central Standing Committee yesterday offered suggestions and expressed support for Lien's trip.
Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (
Since 1992, however, the definition of "one China" has become increasingly ambiguous, and a return to the policy as it was in 1992 should be made clear for the Lien-Hu meeting, Ma said.
During the KMT administration the government said that a consensus had not been reached. After the KMT became an opposition party, however, it began to insist that both sides had agreed that there was only one China, but the definition of one China was open to different interpretations.
Ma also said that the delegation shouldn't seek to usurp the government's role in cross-strait relations.
As leader of an opposition party, Lien can reach a mutual consensus of views with China, but the realization of such a consensus is up to the administration to work out with the Chinese government, Ma said.
Taipei has once again made it to the top 100 in Oxford Economics’ Global Cities Index 2025 report, moving up five places from last year to 60. The annual index, which was published last month, evaluated 1,000 of the most populated metropolises based on five indices — economics, human capital, quality of life, environment and governance. New York maintained its top spot this year, placing first in the economics index thanks to the strength of its vibrant financial industry and economic stability. Taipei ranked 263rd in economics, 44th in human capital, 15th in quality of life, 284th for environment and 75th in governance,
The Sports Administration yesterday demanded an apology from the national table tennis association for barring 17-year-old Yeh Yi-tian (葉伊恬) from competing in the upcoming World Table Tennis (WTT) United States Smash tournament in Las Vegas this July. The sports agency said in a statement that the Chinese Taipei Table Tennis Association (CTTTA) must explain to the public why it withdrew Yeh from the WTT tournament in Las Vegas. The sports agency said it contacted the association to express its disapproval of the decision-making process after receiving a complaint from Yeh’s coach, Chuang
Control Yuan Secretary-General Lee Chun-yi (李俊俋) tendered his resignation last night, admitting that he had misused a government vehicle, as reported by media. His resignation was immediately accepted by the Control Yuan. In a statement explaining why he had resigned, Lee apologized for using a Control Yuan vehicle to transport his dog to a pet grooming salon on May 20. The issue first came to light late last month, when TVBS News reported that Lee had instructed his driver to take the dog to the salon. The news channel broadcast photos that it said were taken by an unnamed whistle-blower, which purportedly showed the
A former officer in China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) who witnessed the aftermath of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre has warned that Taiwan could face a similar fate if China attempts to unify the country by force. Li Xiaoming (李曉明), who was deployed to Beijing as a junior officer during the crackdown, said Taiwanese people should study the massacre carefully, because it offers a glimpse of what Beijing is willing to do to suppress dissent. “What happened in Tiananmen Square could happen in Taiwan too,” Li told CNA in a May 22 interview, ahead of the massacre’s 36th anniversary. “If Taiwanese students or
RSS