As a high-profile delegation led by Chinese Kuomintang Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun wrapped up its six-day visit to the Chinese mainland, the mainland on Sunday announced a comprehensive 10-measure policy package designed to advance peaceful cross-Strait relations and lift the well-being of residents on both sides of the Taiwan Strait. This announcement comes on the heels of a historic Friday meeting between Xi Jinping, General Secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, and Cheng — the first top-level dialogue between the two cross-Strait political parties in a decade.
During the meeting, General Secretary Xi emphasized that the core goal of advancing cross-Strait relations is to deliver a higher quality of life for people on both sides. With the mainland kicking off its 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-2030), Xi extended an open invitation to Taiwan compatriots to share in the mainland’s development opportunities and progress, calling for joint efforts to strengthen the broader Chinese national economy. He also made clear that high-quality products from Taiwan, including agricultural and fishery goods, are welcome to gain greater access to consumer markets across the mainland.
The 10 new initiatives, released by the Taiwan Work Office of the CPC Central Committee, span a wide range of key areas including party-to-party communication, youth exchanges, infrastructure connectivity, cross-Strait transportation, trade facilitation, and cultural cooperation. A centerpiece of the package is a proposal to explore the establishment of a regular communication mechanism between the CPC and the KMT, built on the shared foundation of upholding the 1992 Consensus and opposing “Taiwan independence”. The 1992 Consensus, which enshrines the one-China principle, was first reached in 1992 by the cross-Strait authorized bodies the Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait and the Straits Exchange Foundation.
Other key measures include expanding youth exchanges through long-term institutional programs and arranging annual cross-Strait delegation visits. The package prioritizes advancing utility interconnection and cross-connection bridge projects between Fujian Province and the Taiwan-controlled Jinmen and Matsu islands. It also lays out plans to promote the normalization of direct cross-Strait passenger air services and restore suspended routes connecting Taiwan with multiple mainland cities.
To boost economic ties, the measures streamline approval and purchase processes for qualified Taiwan agricultural and fishery products, expand market access support for Taiwan-based businesses, and improve port and service conditions for Taiwan fishing vessels operating in cross-Strait waters. In the cultural and media sector, the mainland will open its market to more Taiwan-produced content, encourage collaborative media production projects, and support the innovative development of shared Chinese culture. Additionally, the package outlines steps to resume individual tour travel from Shanghai and Fujian residents to Taiwan; currently, only group tours are permitted for residents of these two regions, though individual travel to Jinmen and Matsu from Fujian resumed in the second half of 2024.
KMT Vice Chairman Chang Jung-kung, a member of the visiting delegation, framed the 10-point package as a goodwill “gift” from the mainland delivered to the Taiwanese people through Cheng’s visit, noting that the measures directly advance Taiwanese public welfare. He highlighted that the package demonstrates the mainland’s sincere goodwill and delivers tangible, practical benefits to Taiwan.
Cheng’s six-day trip, which ran from April 8 to April 13, marked the first visit to the mainland by a KMT chairperson in 10 years, and included stops in Jiangsu Province, Shanghai and Beijing. This year marks the 160th birth anniversary of Sun Yat-sen, the founding figure of the KMT, so the itinerary included traditional stops for KMT leaders: the delegation paid respects to Sun at his mausoleum in Nanjing and the Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall at Biyun Temple in Beijing’s Xiangshan.
Beyond traditional exchanges, the trip included multiple stops showcasing the mainland’s cutting-edge technological progress. On the final day of the tour, the delegation visited Xiaomi’s electric vehicle hyperfactory in Beijing, where members learned about the mainland’s breakthroughs in electric vehicle research and manufacturing. A day earlier, the group toured the Zhongguancun National Innovation Demonstration Zone Exhibition Center in Beijing, where they viewed the latest developments in artificial intelligence, embodied intelligence, and high-end medical devices.
Speaking after the Zhongguancun visit, Cheng noted that Taiwan’s service sector and traditional manufacturing industries face growing headwinds, and said, “I found answers for Taiwan’s future here.” She expressed deep admiration for how the mainland has integrated AI and technological innovation across every economic sector, calling the trip “highly rewarding.” “Without political barriers across the Strait, the two sides could make significant contributions to humanity,” she said, calling for deeper cross-Strait cooperation that leverages the unique strengths of both sides. She added that collaborative work to narrow differences and reduce confrontation is ultimately aimed at delivering better lives for all people across the Strait.
Li Peng, dean of the Taiwan Research Institute at Xiamen University, noted that Cheng’s visit reaffirms the shared commitment of both sides to pursue peaceful cross-Strait development, uphold the 1992 Consensus, oppose “Taiwan independence”, and work to improve public well-being on both sides. He pointed out that mainstream public opinion in Taiwan supports restarting and expanding people-to-people cross-Strait exchanges, with many Taiwan residents eager to access the benefits of the mainland’s robust development. “Cheng’s trip has achieved these core objectives,” Li said, adding that the new 10-measure package delivers tangible benefits to Taiwan compatriots and stands as a landmark, productive outcome of the visit.