KMT caucus whip heads to Beijing to discuss cross-strait ties

Taipei, April 26 (CNA) Kuomintang (KMT) legislative caucus whip Fu Kun-chi (傅崐萁) led a delegation of 17 KMT lawmakers to Beijing on Friday for a three-day visit, aiming to foster peace and prosperity across the Taiwan Strait.

The trip represents the voice of the Taiwanese public and the largest party in the Legislature, Fu said before departing from Taoyuan International Airport.

“The peace-thawing journey aims to restore the interrupted cross-strait relations of the past eight years. Peace is needed across the Taiwan Strait,” Fu added.

In addition to easing cross-strait tensions, the visit seeks to enhance two-way tourism and facilitate the export of Taiwanese agricultural and fishery products to China, he said.

The delegation will also seek opportunities to revitalize the economy of Hualien, which was struck by a magnitude 7.2 earthquake earlier this month, Fu said.

The delegation includes KMT legislators Jessica Chen (陳玉珍), Wang Hung-wei (王鴻薇), Chen Hsueh-shen (陳雪生) and Lo Ming-tsai (羅明才).

According to China’s Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO), the lawmakers will visit a factory of Xiaomi Auto, a Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer headquartered in Beijing, and a driverless vehicle demonstration park on Saturday.

Sources in Beijing said the delegation is scheduled to attend a meeting on Saturday with Chinese officials, potentially including TAO Director Song Tao (宋濤) or Wang Huning (王滬寧), chairman of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference.

On Sunday, the delegation is slated to participate in activities held by the General Administration of Customs of the People’s Republic of China, and the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, sources said.

The delegation will hold discussions with Taiwanese youth and Taiwanese business representatives later that day, they said.

The trip, ahead of President-elect Lai Ching-te’s (賴清德) inauguration on May 20, is being closely watched, with spokespeople for the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) warning the delegation “not to step on the red lines of democracy and national security,” with particular reference to the provisions of the Anti-Infiltration Act.

Activities of concern include negotiations with China and discussions relating to Taiwan’s legislative agenda and law amendments, the DPP said.

The DPP also called on the Chinese authorities to conduct exchanges with Taiwan’s democratically elected and legitimate government instead of “engaging in private negotiations with the opposition party under political preconditions.”

(By Wen Kuei-hsiang, Yeh Chen and Lee Hsin-Yin)

Enditem/AW