Taipei [Taiwan], April 1 : The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) called on Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) chairwoman Cheng Li-wun to seriously acknowledge the pressure and coercion exerted by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) on Taiwan, refrain from supporting its political agenda, and avoid its "united front" strategies designed to create internal divisions, according to a Taipei Times report.
The MAC called on the Chinese Nationalist Party chairwoman on Tuesday.
The council made the statement after both the KMT and China's state-run Xinhua news agency confirmed that Cheng had accepted an invitation from Chinese President Xi Jinping to visit China next week. The MAC stressed that the CCP's goal of abolishing the Republic of China (ROC) and annexing Taiwan remains unchanged, regardless of any interactions with Taiwanese political groups or individuals.
It further noted that no organisation or individual is permitted to engage in political negotiations with China or handle matters involving government authority without official authorisation.
"We may hope for peace, but we must not be deluded," the council said. "If peace relies solely on the goodwill of CCP leaders, it would present the greatest danger to Taiwan," as cited by Taipei Times.
An official familiar with cross-strait relations said that it would only become clear at the end of Cheng's trip whether she would meet Xi, as her Beijing visit is scheduled for the final day. Based on the CCP's approach to similar visits, individuals are typically required to demonstrate satisfactory conduct earlier in the trip before being granted meetings with top-level officials on the last day, the unnamed official added.
The source also indicated that by scheduling Cheng's visit ahead of Xi's planned meeting with US President Donald Trump, Beijing may be signalling that it has already secured the KMT and could be using the visit to influence the upcoming Trump-Xi summit.
Meanwhile, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) criticised opposition lawmakers, led by the KMT, for blocking and delaying the Executive Yuan's proposed NT$1.25 trillion (US$39.07 billion) special defence budget, according to the Taipei Times report.
The timing of Cheng's visit, coinciding with stalled discussions over the defence budget, has raised concerns that Beijing might be attempting to "exchange defence procurement for a Cheng-Xi meeting," the report said.
Cheng, however, stated that "the global community adheres to a 'one China' policy and does not support Taiwanese independence, reflecting the prevailing sentiment among Taiwan's public."
DPP Legislator Michelle Lin criticised Cheng's remarks, saying they echoed the position of China's Taiwan Affairs Office. "The consensus in Taiwan is that the ROC and the People's Republic of China are not subordinate to one another," Lin said.
DPP policy committee executive director Rosalia Wu also commented that Cheng appears willing to say anything in pursuit of a meeting with Xi, as reported by Taipei Times.
Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor