China’s President Xi Jinping met with Taiwan’s opposition party leader Cheng Li-wun on Friday. The meeting took place a month before US President Donald Trump is scheduled to visit Beijing for a summit with Xi.
Xi told Cheng he had “full confidence” that Taiwanese and Chinese people would be united, stating it was an inevitable part of history. He also said China was willing to strengthen dialogue with groups in Taiwan, including the KMT, on the common political foundation of opposing Taiwan independence.
Cheng earlier told Xi that the Taiwan Strait would no longer be a focal point of potential conflict and both sides should transcend political confrontation. She proposed that the sides work toward Taiwan participating in international organizations such as Interpol and regional trade agreements.
Taiwanese lawmakers are divided over the government’s plan to spend NT$1.25 trillion ($39 billion) on defense, which has been stalled for months in parliament controlled by opposition parties including the KMT. Cheng has opposed the proposal, insisting “Taiwan isn’t an ATM” and instead backing a KMT plan to allocate NT$380 billion ($12 billion) for US weapons with the option for more acquisitions.
The KMT leader landed in Shanghai on Tuesday evening, saying shortly after her arrival that the two sides of the Taiwan Strait are not doomed to war. She also visited the eastern city of Nanjing, where she paid respects at the mausoleum of revolutionary leader Sun Yat-sen, one of the few Chinese historical figures revered in both Beijing and Taipei.