People First Party (PFP) Chairman James Soong (宋楚瑜) will begin his landmark journey to China on May 5, the party said yesterday, adding that the agenda for his trip is still being hammered out.
In a statement issued yesterday afternoon, the PFP said the preliminary results of party secretary-general Chin Chin-sheng's (秦金生) working trip to China have Soong leaving for Xian, China on May 5 and returning from Beijing to Taiwan on May 12. All other details are still being settled by Chin in China, the statement read.
Chin left for Beijing on Sunday with other PFP personnel to discuss the details of Soong's upcoming trip with Chinese authorities. According to the party, Chin was received by Jia Qinglin (賈慶林), the chairman of China's People's Political Consultative Conference, on Sunday night. The two spoke until 4am the next morning about the details of the trip, the party said.
Jia last month invited Soong and Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Lien Chan (連戰) to visit Beijing in their capacity as party chairmen. While Lien is leaving on his trip to China today, the PFP waited until last week to formally accept and begin planning their trip.
During the meeting on Sunday, Jia expressed his respect for the PFP's long-term efforts to facilitate cross-strait relations and cross-strait peace, the statement said.
"This is the first time officials from the PFP and the CCP have come in contact. Both sides understand that there are numerous difficulties involved in improving cross-strait relations, but both also expect to gradually break through those difficulties," the statement read.
Given the similar natures and origin of their trips, Lien and Soong's trips have been widely compared by the media.
Lien said at a press conference yesterday morning that while he does not know the specifics of the PFP trip, the KMT welcomes any efforts to facilitate cross-strait peace and dialogue.
Chin is set to return from China tomorrow.
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
The New Taipei City Government would assist relatives of those killed or injured in last month’s car-ramming incident in Sansia District (三峽) to secure compensation, Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) said yesterday, two days after the driver died in a hospital. “The city government will do its best to help the relatives of the car crash incident seek compensation,” Hou said. The mayor also said that the city’s Legal Affairs, Education and Social Welfare departments have established a joint mechanism to “provide coordinated assistance” to victims and their families. Three people were killed and 12 injured when a car plowed into schoolchildren and their
RSS