China said Sunday it would resume some suspended ties with Taiwan, including direct flights and imports of aquaculture products, following a visit by a Beijing-friendly opposition leader.
The Taiwan Work Office under China’s Communist Party issued a statement saying it would explore setting up a longstanding communication mechanism between the Communist Party and Taiwan’s Kuomintang Party. It said it will facilitate the import of Taiwan’s aquaculture products that it had previously banned.
Cheng Li-wun, the head of the Kuomingtang, and China’s President Xi Jinping held a high-profile meeting Friday during which they called for peace, without offering specifics. China claims the island as part of its territory and hasn't ruled out the use of force to annex it.
Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council, which oversees the relationship with China, said the measures that were announced, such as promoting a communication mechanism, were "political transactions" between the two parties that circumvented the government of Taiwan.
"The government’s position is clear: to ensure the interests of the nation and its people, all Cross-Strait affairs involving public power must be negotiated by both governments on an equal and dignified basis to be effective and truly protect the rights and well-being of the people,” the Mainland Affairs Council said in response to the Chinese announcement.
