ROC President Ma Ying-jeou said April 29 that institutionalized talks in 1993 between top negotiators from Taiwan’s Straits Exchange Foundation and its mainland Chinese counterpart the Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits ushered in a new era of Taipei-Beijing exchanges.
“The meeting between SEF Chairman Koo Chen-fu and ARATS Chairman Wang Daohan in Singapore signaled the historic beginning of cooperation after 44 years of separation,” Ma said. “It also saw cross-strait animosity and confrontation replaced with negotiation and consultation.
“Conducting pragmatic discussions and seeking common ground while putting aside differences are the most lasting legacy of the Koo-Wang talks.”
Ma made the remarks while addressing a reception in Taipei City marking the 20th anniversary of the SEF-ARATS summit.
As the first authorized meeting by officials from both sides of the strait, the event was a breathtaking success with Koo and Wang concluding four technical agreements on cross-strait exchanges, Ma said.
The president holds that this pragmatic approach to Taiwan-mainland China relations has been further fostered since he took office in May 2008. It also helped make possible his administration’s goal of maintaining the cross-strait status quo based on the principle of no unification, no independence and no use of force, as well as the ROC Constitution and 1992 consensus.
The 1992 consensus is an informal, oral understanding that there exists only one China, inclusive of Taiwan and mainland China, with both sides agreeing to differ on its precise political definition. It has served as the basis for Taipei’s dialogue with Beijing.
Taipei-Beijing relations have been boosted across a spectrum of areas by concluding 18 agreements including the Cross-Straits Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA), according to Ma, adding that robust two-way economic ties will be further strengthened with soon-to-be-concluded agreements on trade in goods and services.
People-to-people exchanges have also increased dramatically, the president said, citing 616 weekly cross-strait direct flights, more than 7 million visits of tourists to Taiwan and 17,000 students arriving on the island per year.
In keeping with the government’s policy of achieving sustainable cross-strait peace by bringing the younger generations together, Ma said Taiwan now recognizes 111 mainland Chinese universities and is set to begin trialing later this year 24-month undergrad degree programs for junior college graduates from the other side of the strait.
These undertakings are based on the principle of putting Taiwan first for the benefit of the people, Ma said, and the government will continue adhering to this approach in cross-strait relations by putting economics before politics and prioritizing urgent issues and those that are easily solved.
“We will not push for ‘two Chinas,’ ‘one China, one Taiwan’ or Taiwan independence,” the president said. “Cross-strait exchanges over the past five years have set an example for East Asia and the world by demonstrating peaceful resolution of disputes.
“We must cherish and continue this hard-earned result.” (RC-JSM)
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