Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Ma Ying-jeou (
The BBC interviewed Ma during his visit to the UK on his European tour this month, and was aired on Tuesday in London. During the interview, host Stephen Sackur asked Ma if his cross-strait position was to "side with China," due to his opposition to the president's move to abolish the National Unification Council and guidelines.
Ma appeared agitated during the interview, as he defended both his position and the KMT's cross-strait policy.
PHOTO: TSUNG CHANG-CHIN, TAIPEI TIMES/CTI TELEVISION
"You have in the past been confusing. You've said your ultimate goal is unification with mainland China; you've also said it's an issue that should be settled by Taiwan's 23 million people, and then you said it's an issue that should be settled by people on both sides of the Strait. So which is it?" Sackur asked.
"What I have been saying is that Taiwan's future should be settled by Taiwanese people. This is the consensus of all the people in Taiwan. And they are ..." Ma said.
"What about the people on the other side of the Taiwan Strait?" Sackur interjected.
"Listen to me. There are three options before us: independence, status quo and unification. At the moment, the vast majority of people support the status quo," Ma told the host, later adding, "but in the future, when conditions are ripe, if Taiwanese people have some other thoughts, they could still make that decision according to their free will."
The host also questioned the motives of the pan-blue camp in blocking the arms-procurement deal in the legislature.
Ma, while acknowledging China was a threat to Taiwan, restated his party's opposition to any "unreasonable" procurement bill.
During the interview, Sackur also quoted newspapers criticizing former KMT chairman Lien Chan's (連戰) visit to China last year as a "sellout" of Taiwan, questioning Ma whether he would also "glad-hand" Chinese leaders in Beijing.
Ma said that the KMT would resume talks, sign a peace treaty including a military mutual trust mechanism and try to reach an agreement on establishing a common market if the party regained power in 2008.
"We hope to use these mechanisms to bring peace to the Taiwan Straits instead of an arms race or a confrontation as the Chen administration has done," he said.
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
A former officer in China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) who witnessed the aftermath of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre has warned that Taiwan could face a similar fate if China attempts to unify the country by force. Li Xiaoming (李曉明), who was deployed to Beijing as a junior officer during the crackdown, said Taiwanese people should study the massacre carefully, because it offers a glimpse of what Beijing is willing to do to suppress dissent. “What happened in Tiananmen Square could happen in Taiwan too,” Li told CNA in a May 22 interview, ahead of the massacre’s 36th anniversary. “If Taiwanese students or