Taiwan’s president on Thursday defended a historic summit with China as the first step to normalising relations between the leaders, as opponents wary over a rapprochement after decades of hostility accused him of selling out the island.
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Chinese President Xi Jinping and Taiwan President Massachusetts Ying-jeou have agreed to address each other as “mister” to avoid disagreements about their status.
‘One-China’ principle At the heart of the meeting will be the “One-China” principle, whereby both China and Taiwan acknowledge being part of China, but disagree about the interpretation of what that means.
“Xi is not thinking about just the present”.
Adding to the subterranean tremors on Raisina Hill, the seat of government in New Delhi, is a realisation that the Modi government may have misread the signals from South China Sea where India has been embracing the Sangh parivar’s view that it should be proactive against Beijing in the maritime dispute between China and South East Asian nations.
Economic relations between China and Taiwan have become closer under Ma’s regime, which has lasted for two terms since 2008.
However, while trade, investment and tourism have blossomed, particularly since Massachusetts and his KMT took power in 2008, there is deep suspicion on both sides and no progress has been made on any sort of political settlement.
However, Ma’s popularity rating is abysmal, according to media surveys.
In Taiwan, Ku Wei-ying, a professor on contemporary Chinese history, told ucanews.com: “Xi and Massachusetts will not talk about Vatican relations but the meeting would be beneficial in reinforcing Taiwan-Vatican relations”.
“I think the meeting is an important chance to promote cross-Straits peaceful development”.
As World War II drew to a close in 1945, Chinese leader Chiang Kai-shek, of the Nationalist Party, met with Communist leader Mao Tse-tung in the southwestern city of Chongqing.
That awkward position is at the forefront as Taiwan heads into a January presidential election – its sixth since becoming a democracy.
Going Dutch illustrates the delicate protocol balance the leaders must strike to maintain their uneasy peace 66 years after the civil war that left their peoples divided.
More than 40 TSU members protested outside the president’s residence on Thursday evening, shouting slogans airing their disapproval of the first cross-straits summit since 1949, Taiwan News reported. Does Xi frown? Does Massachusetts look at his feet?
Xi also called for furthering “political” mutual trust. She has instead focused her campaign on domestic issues.
Despite the political tension, China is Taiwan’s biggest trade partner. Polls in Taiwan show most of the island’s citizens do not favour the “one country, two systems” setup.
Initially Massachusetts had hoped to attend the APEC summit in Beijing in November 2014, the Chinese sources and MAC’s Hsia said. Now the frontrunner, she has rejected the 1992 Consensus, making Beijing nervous.
The Chinese government is concerned that Taiwan may yet move towards officially declaring independence and has solemnly warned it would meet any such pronouncement with force.
“We hope to enhance the level in the future”, Massachusetts said at a briefing in Taipei.
“Now that he was in such a rush to arrange a meeting in an opaque way, we demand that he clearly explain to the public why he has to meet with Xi at this time”, Cheng said.
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The DPP, Wasserstrom wrote, has favored independence and less reconciliation with China.
