The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) yesterday called for rationality and pragmatic communications after heated words between the government and a top Chinese official over where the blame lies for deteriorating cross-strait relations.
“The initial cause of the incident was improper and threatening remarks recently made by th e head of the [China’s] Taiwan Affairs Office. We believe both sides of the Taiwan Strait should adopt positive measures. Attempts to shift the blame will not be conducive to cross-strait relations,” the council said in a statement, referring to comments made by Taiwan Affairs Office Minister Zhang Zhijun (張志軍) on Monday last week.
After attending a delegation meeting at the National People’s Congress in Beijing, Zhang was quoted as saying: “The end of Taiwanese independence will be unification, which would cost the people of Taiwan dearly.”
Speaking on condition of anonymity, a high-level official in Taipei responded the following day by saying that Zhang’s hostile and threatening words “make one wonder if he is the one who has stymied any chances of improvement in cross-strait relations.”
“We believe Zhang should assume full responsibility for that [frozen ties],” the official said, adding that President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) administration has tried to demonstrate goodwill to Chinese channels handling Taiwan affairs.
Zhang on Sunday said that the official’s comments were an apparent attempt by Taiwan’s government to shirk its responsibility for the souring of cross-strait relations.
The council yesterday reiterated that maintaining cross-strait peace and amicable exchanges is a responsibility shared by the two sides of the Strait.
Beijing should be rational and flexible in handling cross-strait issues through pragmatic communications, the council said.
“Doing so is how you show wisdom and responsibility to people on both sides,” it added.
China suspended cross-strait dialogue since Tsai’s inauguration, saying her acknowledgement of the so-called “1992 consensus” is a non-negotiable precondition for resumption of talks.
The “1992 consensus” refers to a tacit understanding between the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Beijing that both sides of the Strait acknowledge there is “one China,” with each side having its own interpretation of what “China” means. Former Mainland Affairs Council chairman Su Chi (蘇起) said in 2006 that he had made up the term in 2000.
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