The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday that it was too early for China and Taiwan to hold talks on political matters, despite Beijing’s interest in doing so.
MAC Vice Chairman Fu Don-cheng (傅棟成) said that cross-strait negotiations were still focused on economic issues, adding that future issues would likely include cultural or media exchanges.
The timing and conditions were not ripe for talks on political issues, he said.
Fu made the remarks in response to complaints lodged by the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP).
Citing a recent report on the situation in China, DPP Spokesman Cheng Wen-tsang (鄭文燦) said that as China is preparing for political dialogue with Taiwan, some were worried that President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) would break his promise of not discussing unification during his presidency.
If the Ma administration engaged in political negotiations with China, it would cause a grave crisis and pose a serious threat to Taiwan’s sovereignty, he said.
Ma has pledged not to discuss unification with Beijing during his presidency, not to pursue or support de jure Taiwanese independence and not to use military force to resolve any cross-strait dispute.
Cheng said that as Ma has been currying favor with Beijing, the price Beijing had asked Taipei to pay in return had increased over time.
In related news, Fu yesterday said that they expected to launch negotiations in October on “administrative affairs” related to an economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA), as both sides have said that they hope to sign the proposed pact next year.
Fu was evasive, however, about when the accord would be forged, saying it would happen “as soon as the negotiations were completed.”
The news indicates the administration will push ahead with the ECFA plan despite opposition from the DPP, which has requested that the administration hold a referendum to decide the matter.
An assessment study and report conducted by the Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research concluded that the inking of an ECFA with China could generate between 257,000 and 263,000 jobs per year in Taiwan and raise the annual GDP by between 1.65 percent and by 1.72 percent.
Fu yesterday said that the planned business deal was merely a framework agreement, which would include the items to be addressed, a time table to address the issues and an “early harvest” mechanism, which is designed to accelerate the implementation of an agreement, often by reducing the tariffs on some specific products.
The businesses covered by the “early harvest” mechanism would not be many, Fu said, and they would “not be harmful” to either side.
“[The proposed framework agreement] is similar to a free trade agreement whose goal is trade liberalization,” he said. “But before both sides sit down and talk about details, we don’t know what the content will be.”
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