Taiwan Visit by Chinese Delegation Spurs Internal Political Tensions – A Chinese government delegation visited Taiwan for the first time since the pandemic began, causing some partisan tension on the island over cross-strait interactions as Beijing reiterated its intention to annex it.
The delegation of six officials, led by Li Xiaodong, deputy head of the Shanghai office of China’s Taiwan Affairs Office, arrived in Taipei with plans to attend the Lantern Festival and meet with local officials. They were invited by the city government, led by mayor Chiang Wan-an, of the opposition Kuomintang party (KMT).
People Also Read: Moldovan PM Resigns Blaming Crises Caused by Russian Aggression
According to local media, the group arrived on Saturday and were quickly driven away without answering questions from gathered reporters. A dozen pro-Taiwan independence supporters demonstrated outside the airport, shouting “Taiwan and China, separate countries” and “Chinese people, get out,” while another small group of pro-China supporters welcomed them.
The Mainland Affairs Council of Taiwan said it had approved the application for a three-day visit on the condition that it be low-key and free of public political statements. Members of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) accused Chiang of being secretive about the visit, withholding information from the DPP and the public out of fear of provoking protest or controversy.
The visit has heightened domestic concerns about cross-strait communication. The KMT has long sought closer ties with the Chinese government, and its vice chairman, Andrew Hsia, recently paid a visit to Beijing. Hsia’s 10-day visit, the second since a contentious visit shortly after Chinese military drills following Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan last year, drew criticism.
Hsia was accused of collaborating with an aggressive state, but he and the KMT defended the trip, claiming that it helped to reduce tensions. The KMT is expected to reclaim power in Taiwan’s presidential elections in 2024. The KMT’s position contrasts with that of the DPP, whose current leadership maintains that Taiwan is a sovereign independent nation whose people overwhelmingly oppose Beijing’s “reunification” plan.
The Chinese government cut communication with Taipei upon their election in 2016, labelling them separatists, but city-to-city visits continued until the pandemic closed borders. China’s military harassment of Taiwan has increased since then. Air force and navy sorties around Taiwan are now almost daily, with frequent crossings of the median line.
People Also Read: Taiwan President Resigns as Party Head After Local Election Losses
Lev Nachman, a political science professor at Taiwan’s National Chengchi University, said the cross-strait visits were seen as controversial by those on the “green” (pro-DPP) side of Taiwan’s politics, because “there is worry these actions are at the risk of Taiwan’s safety and sovereignty.” At the same time that Taipei officials welcomed the Chinese delegation, China’s foreign minister, Wang Yi, resisted calls to reassure the international community that further Chinese military escalation was not imminent.
