Intermediaries from the Chinese mainland and Taiwan are holding two days of talks in Taipei. It’s the 10th round since 2008.
The talks are expected to result in the signing of two agreements on meteorological and earthquake monitoring cooperation. The two agreements will center around disaster prevention and relief with the aim of protecting lives and property.
Chen Deming, president of the mainland-based Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits, arrived in Taiwan on Wednesday. He was received by Lin Join-sane, chairman of Taiwan-based Straits Exchange Foundation, at the Grand Hotel.
Following today’s talks, Chen will meet Taiwan’s mainland affairs chief Wang Yu-chi. On Friday before heading home, he’ll visit the Taipei Zoo to see panda cub Yuan Zai. Yuan Zai was born to a pair of giant pandas who were a goodwill gift from the Mainland to Taiwan in 2008.
Another step forward in cross-strait ties. On Wednesday, the Straits Exchange Foundation held a welcoming ceremony in Taipei for the mainland delegation.
Chen Deming led the visiting group for the first time since taking over as the president of the Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits.
"Before I came here, I attended the meeting between General Secretary of CPC Central Committee Xi Jinping and the delegation led by the Kuomintang Honorary Chairman Lien Chan. General Secretary Xi Jinping said the Chinese mainland and Taiwan are one big family, and we should fight for our Chinese dreams together. This is a noble mission shared by me and Mr. Lin. We should bring cross-Strait ties closer, and make our dreams come true," said Chen.
"We have already held nine rounds of talks and signed 19 agreements. If things go smoothly tomorrow, we will sign two more deals, bringing the total number of signed deals to 21. That is like building 21 expressways for cross-Strait cooperation, that will create a win-win situation, and enable both sides to enjoy more of the benefits of peace. People on both sides should cherish such achievements," said Lin.
During the two-day talks, the two sides are scheduled to discuss ways of preventing double taxation for citizens, commodity trade agreements, as well as setting up a mechanism for resolving trade disputes, and establishing cross-Strait offices by both organizations.
At the end of the meeting, they are expected to sign two agreements that will formalize cooperation on meteorological and seismic monitoring.
"If everything goes well, the two sides will sign the two agreements. There have been exchanges and cooperation on these matters for years, but not with support from the government level. These agreements will change that, so that the two sides can work together to better protect people’s safety and their property. It is a sign of expanded cooperation, and the development of the dialogue mechanism across the Strait," said Ma Xiaoguang, Spokesperson of State Council's Taiwan Affairs Office.
On Wednesday afternoon, the two sides held a meeting to prepare the final details of the two agreements. This comes one week after General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee Xi Jinping met visiting Kuomintang Honorary Chairman Lien Chan in Beijing, which was also preceded by the first formal meeting in over six decades between the top cross-Strait affairs officials from both sides.
