BEIJING – A senior spokesperson from China’s mainland authorities reaffirmed Wednesday the mainland’s consistent commitment to pursuing peaceful development across the Taiwan Strait, during a press briefing addressing a landmark visit by a delegation from Taiwan’s Kuomintang (KMT) party.
The KMT delegation, headed by party chairwoman Cheng Li-wun, touched down in Shanghai on Tuesday, kicking off a six-day visit that will take the group through Jiangsu Province, Shanghai and Beijing, concluding this coming Sunday. This trip marks the first time in 10 years that a sitting KMT chairperson has led a party delegation to the Chinese mainland, marking an important moment for cross-Strait exchanges after a decade of limited high-level party-to-party contact.
Zhu Fenglian, spokesperson for the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, laid out the mainland’s stance in response to questions about the visit. “On the shared political foundation of upholding the 1992 Consensus and opposing ‘Taiwan independence,’ we stand ready to work with all political parties, groups and individuals across Taiwan – the Kuomintang included – to advance the steady, peaceful development of cross-Strait relations,” Zhu stated.
Zhu further emphasized that both sides of the Taiwan Strait are part of one indivisible China, and that questions concerning cross-Strait ties are internal matters that must be resolved through dialogue and consultation between Chinese people on both sides. She added that compatriots across the Strait share sufficient wisdom and collective capability to resolve their own issues in a way that serves the common interests of all Chinese people.
The visit comes as cross-Strait relations have faced heightened tensions in recent years, driven by pro-separatist forces on the island and external interference. The high-profile KMT visit is widely seen as an opportunity to restart people-to-people and party-to-party exchanges, opening a new channel for dialogue to reduce misunderstanding and lower regional risks.