China's top cross-strait negotiator said yesterday that he's prepared to visit Taiwan anytime and that he wouldn't reject a meeting with former President Lee Teng-hui (
The president of China's Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait (ARATS, 海協會), Wang Daohan (汪道涵), made the remarks yesterday in Shanghai, while meeting a delegation from Taiwan.
The delegation, consisting of independent and opposition lawmakers, is led by former DPP chairman Hsu Hsin-liang (
Wang said that he is still energetic and the fact he has read many books published in Taiwan shows he is prepared to visit anytime.
"We hope the link established in 1992 and 1993 between Taiwan and China could last. Over past years, we have been preparing for new contact with Taiwan," he said.
Responding to a suggestion by Hsu that he visit both Lee and Chen so the three might exchange opinions on cross-strait affairs, Wang said, "If I had the opportunity, I wouldn't reject a meeting with them."
As for the issue of direct links, Wang said the negotiations should be carried out by private bodies.
He also said Chen's rejection of the "one China" principle is the major obstacle in the resumption of talks between Taiwan's Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF,
"[Chen] speaks Chinese, reads Chinese and frequently gets cross-strait affairs related information from people who visit China, but he still refuses to accept the `one China' principle. That's why the SEF and the ARATS can not resume talks," he said.
Chiao Jen-ho (
But Wang responded that the "Taiwan government is still behind the SEF, and its refusal to recognize `one China' is really troublesome."
But he added, "Chen is not a person who will never change ? China still has hope for him."
Meanwhile, Chen told reporters in Malawi on Sunday that normalizing cross-strait relations is the government's longstanding goal, but that he regrets China is still bound to political ideology when it comes to cross-strait affairs.
He added, however: "I would talk to Chinese leaders on any issue as long as no preconditions are set."
The Ministry of Education (MOE) is to launch a new program to encourage international students to stay in Taiwan and explore job opportunities here after graduation, Deputy Minister of Education Yeh Ping-cheng (葉丙成) said on Friday. The government would provide full scholarships for international students to further their studies for two years in Taiwan, so those who want to pursue a master’s degree can consider applying for the program, he said. The fields included are science, technology, engineering, mathematics, semiconductors and finance, Yeh added. The program, called “Intense 2+2,” would also assist international students who completed the two years of further studies in
Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) departed for Europe on Friday night, with planned stops in Lithuania and Denmark. Tsai arrived at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport on Friday night, but did not speak to reporters before departing. Tsai wrote on social media later that the purpose of the trip was to reaffirm the commitment of Taiwanese to working with democratic allies to promote regional security and stability, upholding freedom and democracy, and defending their homeland. She also expressed hope that through joint efforts, Taiwan and Europe would continue to be partners building up economic resilience on the global stage. The former president was to first
Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Monday called for greater cooperation between Taiwan, Lithuania and the EU to counter threats to information security, including attacks on undersea cables and other critical infrastructure. In a speech at Vilnius University in the Lithuanian capital, Tsai highlighted recent incidents in which vital undersea cables — essential for cross-border data transmission — were severed in the Taiwan Strait and the Baltic Sea over the past year. Taiwanese authorities suspect Chinese sabotage in the incidents near Taiwan’s waters, while EU leaders have said Russia is the likely culprit behind similar breaches in the Baltic. “Taiwan and our European
The Taipei District Court sentenced babysitters Liu Tsai-hsuan (劉彩萱) and Liu Jou-lin (劉若琳) to life and 18 years in prison respectively today for causing the death of a one-year-old boy in December 2023. The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said that Liu Tsai-hsuan was entrusted with the care of a one-year-old boy, nicknamed Kai Kai (剴剴), in August 2023 by the Child Welfare League Foundation. From Sept. 1 to Dec. 23 that year, she and her sister Liu Jou-lin allegedly committed acts of abuse against the boy, who was rushed to the hospital with severe injuries on Dec. 24, 2023, but did not
RSS