Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) today said she plans to visit the US in June, where she is to meet with political figures, think tanks and the Taiwanese diaspora to spread her message of cross-strait peace.
Cheng met with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) in Beijing on April 10, making her the first KMT chairperson to travel to China in a decade.
Today, she told a radio program that she would discuss the content of the meeting on her trip to the US, emphasizing the two leaders’ intentions to maintain peace across the Taiwan Strait and ensure regional stability.
Photo: CNA
She vowed to present a new direction for cross-strait relations that would also align with US interests.
Taiwan should not have to choose between China and the US, she said.
What Taiwan needs is to garner more support, create new spaces for expansion and no longer be a “chess piece” for China, she said.
The trip is expected to last about 10 days, she said, adding that she hopes to visit cities with large Taiwanese populations to engage with the diaspora.
Cheng said she has been in discussions with the US to arrange an itinerary, but cannot yet announce whether she would meet with members of the US Department of State.
In meetings with US and foreign officials, she said she would discuss strategic issues “much larger and much more critical” than the defense budget, which has been stalled in Taiwan’s legislature for months.
Asked whether the US and Western nations are concerned that Taiwan is becoming “too close” to China, and as a result no longer needs the US, Cheng said that Taiwan no longer needing the US is “impossible.”
Most international observers remain optimistic and supportive of the move, encouraging dialogue across the Strait to lower risk and ensure stability, she said.
Peace across the Strait would also be in the best interests of the US, she said, adding that she aims to explain to her US counterparts that advancing relations with China does not mean “turning our back on the US.”
Furthermore, Cheng was asked whether Taiwan would be a key topic in an upcoming meeting between Xi and US President Donald Trump next month.
Taiwan should not be a bargaining chip for China, she said.
Cheng said she believes Beijing would continue to uphold its “one China” policy and oppose Taiwanese independence, although there is room for Taiwan to build cooperation and friendly relations under this premise.
China would not want Taiwan to become the primary focus of the upcoming presidential meeting, as Beijing is now more confident, stronger and has greater leverage, she added.
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