Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) yesterday met with Shanghai Municipal Taiwan Affairs Office Director Li Wenhui (李文輝) in Taipei.
The two spoke mainly about cultural and economic affairs, and Li did not touch upon political issues, the Taipei City Government said.
Li arrived at Taipei City Hall for a closed-door meeting with Ko at 11:30am, when a few members of a pro-independence group were protesting outside the building.
Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei Times
Ko said earlier yesterday that he would say: “Hello, you are welcome to travel in Taiwan, and do not forget to spend all your cash before you return” to Li during their meeting.
They would not discuss next year’s Taipei-Shanghai twin-city forum, Ko said, as talks about the annual forum usually begin in April.
Taipei City Government spokesman Tom Chou (周台竹) briefed the media about the meeting after it ended.
It was a courtesy visit by Li, and the two main topics they talked about were cultural and economic exchanges, Chou said.
“As everyone knows, cross-strait relations are a sensitive issue, so the visit by Shanghai officials was reviewed by the Mainland Affairs Council,” he said. “The council’s rules are very clear that Taiwan Affairs Office officials cannot be interviewed by the media and must not touch upon political issues.”
Li arrived on Sunday with the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra to promote cultural exchanges, Chou said, adding that the director of the orchestra invited Taiwanese bands or orchestras to perform in two art festivals in Shanghai in September and October next year.
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