Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Chairman Chen Ming-tong (
Chen made the remarks during a gathering with reporters after attending a Dragon Boat Festival seminar in Hualien with China-based Taiwanese businesspeople.
Chen reiterated that the opening to Chinese tourists and the establishment of direct passenger and cargo charter flights were high on the government's agenda for negotiations with China.
"Now that the two sides have achieved major breakthroughs in bilateral technical talks concerning these issues, the Chinese side should speed up its pace in resolving the remaining details and wrap up the talks as soon as possible," Chen said.
"Our side has been doing its best to complete the negotiations as quickly as possible under the directive issued by Premier Chang Chun-hsiung (
Chen told Reuters in a separate interview that all the logistics have been worked out, but Beijing has insisted that Taiwan be known as "China, Taiwan," despite Taipei's objections.
"Things will happen soon," Chen said, referring to when a deal would be reached.
There are an estimated 1 million Taiwanese living and working in China, and Taiwanese have invested an estimated US$100 billion into ventures in China.
China is also Taiwan's top trading partner.
Many of the businesspeople in Hualien said their top priority was getting more regular cross-strait flights.
They expressed frustration at how long talks have dragged on.
"Our home is in Taiwan, but our workplaces are in China," said Wang Jen-sheng (
Taipei and Beijing have been negotiating a tourism agreement for more than a year.
Taiwan would benefit from more integrated military strategies and deployments if the US and its allies treat the East China Sea, the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea as a “single theater of operations,” a Taiwanese military expert said yesterday. Shen Ming-shih (沈明室), a researcher at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said he made the assessment after two Japanese military experts warned of emerging threats from China based on a drill conducted this month by the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) Eastern Theater Command. Japan Institute for National Fundamentals researcher Maki Nakagawa said the drill differed from the
‘WORSE THAN COMMUNISTS’: President William Lai has cracked down on his political enemies and has attempted to exterminate all opposition forces, the chairman said The legislature would motion for a presidential recall after May 20, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday at a protest themed “against green communists and dictatorship” in Taipei. Taiwan is supposed to be a peaceful homeland where people are united, but President William Lai (賴清德) has been polarizing and tearing apart society since his inauguration, Chu said. Lai must show his commitment to his job, otherwise a referendum could be initiated to recall him, he said. Democracy means the rule of the people, not the rule of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), but Lai has failed to fulfill his
A rally held by opposition parties yesterday demonstrates that Taiwan is a democratic country, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday, adding that if opposition parties really want to fight dictatorship, they should fight it on Tiananmen Square in Beijing. The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) held a protest with the theme “against green communists and dictatorship,” and was joined by the Taiwan People’s Party. Lai said the opposition parties are against what they called the “green communists,” but do not fight against the “Chinese communists,” adding that if they really want to fight dictatorship, they should go to the right place and face
A fugitive in a suspected cosmetic surgery fraud case today returned to Taiwan from Canada, after being wanted for six years. Internet celebrity Su Chen-tuan (蘇陳端), known as Lady Nai Nai (貴婦奈奈), and her former boyfriend, plastic surgeon Paul Huang (黃博健), allegedly defrauded clients and friends of about NT$1 billion (US$30.66 million). Su was put on a wanted list in 2019 when she lived in Toronto, Canada, after failing to respond to subpoenas and arrest warrants from the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office. Su arrived at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport at 5am today on an EVA Air flight accompanied by a
RSS