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President-elect urged to specify nature of cross-strait relations

ROC Central News Agency

2016/03/24 18:05:46

Boao, China, March 24 (CNA) China has expressed hope that Taiwan's President-elect Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) will clearly specify her idea of what is the nature of cross-Taiwan Strait relations.

The only answer China wants to hear from Tsai is to the question of "what is the nature of cross-strait relations?" said Zhang Zhijun (張志軍), head of China's Taiwan Affairs Office, while answering reporters' questions before the opening ceremony of the Boao Forum for Asia Thursday.

In an interview with the Taiwan-based China Times newspaper published March 21, Tsai expressed hope that China will display more goodwill before her May 20 inauguration.

Responding to the call, Zhang said the touchstone on "whether or not there is goodwill" is how people treat the "1992 consensus" and define the nature of cross-strait ties.

The Chinese side has made clear that its Taiwan policy will not change because of the results of elections in Taiwan, Zhang said, noting that China's goodwill is reflected in its insistence on the "1992 consensus."

The reason the consensus is important is that "it defines the nature of cross-strait relations," and thanks to the consensus, the two sides have achieved many livelihood-benefiting results during the development of cross-strait links since 2008, he added.

However, they noticed recently that "some people in Taiwan have spoken a lot on cross-strait ties," but the only thing the Chinese side wants to hear at the moment relates to the nature of the relations, Zhang said.

"As long as this (question) is answered, the future of cross-strait ties can be clearly seen," he said, noting that cross-strait relations are now at an important juncture. "Now, the ball is in the other court (Taiwan)," he said.

The "1992 consensus," adopted by President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) for his cross-strait policy, refers to a tacit understanding reached between Taipei and Beijing in 1992 that there is only "one China" but with each side free to interpret what that means.

Tsai and her Democratic Progressive Party, which had a landslide victory in the presidential and legislative elections of Jan. 16, have never recognized the existence of the consensus.

(By Feng Chao and Elizabeth Hsu)
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