Taiwan opposition leader visits China to promote peace
‘This trip is entirely for cross-strait peace and stability, so it has nothing to do with arms procurement or other issues.’
Daily Tribune‘This trip is entirely for cross-strait peace and stability, so it has nothing to do with arms procurement or other issues.’
PHOTOGRAPH courtesy of I-Hwa Cheng / AFP
shanghai (aFP) — Taiwan’s main opposition leader landed in China Tuesday for a rare visit aimed at cross-strait “peace,” as Taipei warns Beijing may try to block US arms sales to the island.
Kuomintang (KMT) chairwoman Cheng Li-wun, the first party leader in a decade to visit China, said she wants to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping before visiting the United States, Taiwan’s main security backer.
The KMT supports closer ties with China, which claims Taiwan as its territory and has threatened force to seize it. Critics accuse Cheng, whose rise to the top of the party drew a congratulatory message from Xi in October, of being too pro-China.
Cheng arrived at Shanghai airport Tuesday afternoon, greeted with flowers before being driven away in a convoy bypassing the terminal, according to Taiwanese media and China’s Xinhua news agency.
Before her trip, Cheng said Taiwan “must do everything in our power to prevent war from breaking out.” She added: “To preserve peace is to preserve Taiwan. Goodwill must be built up and mutual trust needs to be expanded, step by step, by both sides.”
Taiwan’s top China policy body warned Beijing could try to “cut off Taiwan’s military purchases from the US and cooperation with other countries,” which the KMT denies. “This trip is entirely for cross-strait peace and stability, so it has nothing to do with arms procurement or other issues,” Cheng said last week.
Lawmakers have stalled a NT$1.25 trillion ($39 billion) defense plan in the opposition-controlled legislature. Cheng will visit Shanghai, Nanjing, and Beijing over six days, hoping to meet Xi. The last KMT leader to visit China was Hung Hsiu-chu in 2016.
China cut high-level ties after Democratic Progressive Party President Tsai Ing-wen won the presidency, rejecting Beijing’s claims. Relations have worsened amid near-daily Chinese military flights and drills near Taiwan.
Cheng’s visit comes a month before US President Donald Trump meets Xi in Beijing. Washington has pressed Taiwanese opposition lawmakers to approve defense purchases, including US weapons. Cheng has opposed the government’s plan, calling it “Taiwan isn’t an ATM,” backing a smaller KMT proposal of NT$380 billion for US arms with room for more.
She faces divisions within the KMT, as senior moderates push for higher defense spending. While the US remains Taiwan’s largest arms supplier, Beijing has warned against new sales. Washington approved $11 billion in arms in December, with more deals pending.
Cheng said Taiwan should maintain strong defense but does not have to choose between Beijing and Washington.
