【澳大利亚人报】Frosty relations between Beijing, Taipei starting to thaw

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Frosty relations between Beijing, Taipei starting to thaw
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,25552728-25837,00.html

Rowan Callick, Asia-Pacific editor May 29, 2009               
                 
WHILEtension is escalating in the Korean peninsula, the other flashpoint inEast Asia - the Taiwan strait - is being transformed into a zone ofhearts and flowers.

Following the first visitof a leader from the Democratic Progressive Party, previously damned byBeijing as "splittists", China said yesterday that it wanted moreget-togethers.

Taiwan's semi-official Straits Exchange Foundation published asurvey on Tuesday in which 64.5 per cent of respondents said they wereoptimistic about the progress of relations with China, with 66 per centurging the resumption of direct negotiations with Beijing, suspendedfor 13 years.

China's Commerce Ministry announced on Wednesday that it wasorganising three "buying teams" to deepen economic ties by findingproducts and materials in Taiwan.

Taipei has recently relaxed its rules to allow Chinese investment inTaiwan, balancing the accumulation by Taiwanese business of assets inChina, believed to total more than $150 billion.

China has withdrawn its veto on Taiwan's participation inmultilateral bodies, allowing it to attend the World HealthOrganisation's annual assembly for the first time since it ceased torepresent China at the UN.

Direct air, sea and mail links have started in the past year, sinceKuomintang leader Ma Ying-jeou became President of Taiwan. And talksover an economic pact are expected in the next few months.

Chinese President Hu Jintao met Wu Poh-hsiung, chairman of Taiwan'sruling Kuomintang, on Tuesday, the latter's birthday. According to ajoint statement, "the two sides said they should avoid internalstruggle in foreign affairs, and work for the interest of all Chinese".

The Kuomintang and the Chinese Communist Party from which it emerged85 years ago will hold their next inter-party forum in Changsha,capital of China's Hunan province, in July.

Former DPP leader Chen Shui-bian, now on trial for corruption, wasvilified by China during his eight years as Taiwan's president forplanning to formalise Taiwan's independence from China.

And although Taiwan is today led by Kuomintang (Nationalist)President Ma, realists in Beijing have urged greater bipartisanship inTaiwan ties. Otherwise, those ties would unravel whenever Taiwanesevoters swung to the DPP.

Chen Chu, the Mayor of Kaohsiung, Taiwan's second city, and the mostsenior elected party member in Taiwan, visited Beijing last weekend tomeet Mayor Guo Jinlong, and then Shanghai for talks with Mayor HanZheng.

She was ostensibly promoting the World Games to be staged inKaohsiung in July. But China Daily cited analysts as saying: "Chen'svisit is a milestone that may lead to more open communication betweenthe mainland and Taiwan in the wake of warming ties."

Ms Chen's visit was endorsed by the DPP's national leader, TsaiIng-wen. Ms Tsai, who has degrees from Cornell University in the US andthe London School of Economics, is viewed as a pragmatic, mild-manneredparty moderniser, as Mr Ma is within the Kuomintang.

Ms Chen's visit received massive publicity in China. She said she was "bringing a new voice" from Taiwan.

She was applauded back home by supporters and leaders of both mainparties for referring to Mr Ma as President during meetings withChinese officials. Since China views Taiwan as a renegade provincerather than a separate country, it does not refer to Taiwan's leader asa president.

The Chinese censors removed her reference to Mr Ma as President inits coverage. The Speaker of Taiwan's parliament, Wang Jin-pyng, aKuomintang MP, praised Ms Chen's "courage".

But otherwise, the visit was marked by its warmth.

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