Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Lien Chan (連戰) will ask Chinese authorities during his visit to China to remove missiles aimed at Taiwan, a KMT lawmaker said yesterday in Hong Kong.
Legislator Wu Den-yih (吳敦義), who is also a member of the KMT's Central Standing Committee, made the remarks after attending a forum on cross-strait relations.
To the best of his understanding, Wu said Lien would bring up four main topics during his trip.
First, Wu said, Lien will ask Chinese authorities to eliminate barriers to cross-strait cultural and commercial exchanges, such as exempting or reducing tariffs on agricultural and industrial imports from Taiwan.
Second, Wu said, Lien will urge Beijing not to block Taiwan's entry to the World Health Organization (WHO).
"For the sake of epidemic prevention, Taiwan must be included in the WHO-led global health care system. If China continues to block Taiwan's WHO bid, it will draw a backlash from the Taiwan people and hinder the development of cross-strait rapprochement," Wu said.
Third, Wu said, Lien will push China to relocate the hundreds of ballistic missiles deployed in Fujian Province that are targeting Taiwan.
"If China indeed wants to make peace with Taiwan, it should relocate or dismantle its missiles aimed at Taiwan. Otherwise, the people of Taiwan will have ill feelings and doubts about Beijing's sincerity," Wu said.
Lien will ask the Chinese authorities to allow Chinese citizens to make sightseeing trips to Taiwan to promote civilian exchanges and mutual understanding, Wu said.
He said the KMT is willing to do whatever is conducive to Taiwanese people's well-being and cross-strait peace.
Wu delivered a speech on new developments in cross-strait relations at the seminar, sponsored by a federation of Taiwanese business associations in the Asia-Pacific region.
Addressing hundreds of Hong Kong academics, experts and business executives at the seminar, Wu said Hong Kong should strengthen exchanges with Taiwan to maintain its pivotal role in cross-strait engagements.
Wu said he believes that Taiwan, Hong Kong and Shanghai can strengthen cooperation in transshipment, trade, industrial investment and tourist development.
Meanwhile, Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (
Ma said that he strongly believes that Lien will not sign any peace agreements with Chinese Communist Party (CCP) General Secretary Hu Jintao (
Stressing that Lien's visit is aimed at maintaining peace, Ma said that Lien will speak for the people of Taiwan while seeking to help lay a foundation for cross-strait peace.
Lien's visit, planned for early next month, will mark the first KMT-CCP contact in more than 60 years. He is slated to meet Hu in Beijing, in addition to making stops in Nanjing, Xi'an and Shanghai.
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