Are the Communist Party and the KMT reviving a cross-strait political channel?

The Communist Party and Taiwan’s Kuomintang (KMT) appear to be in the final stages of talks to revive an inter-party forum suspended nine years ago. The three-day forum, designed to facilitate party-to-party communication and promote cross-strait exchanges, was scheduled to start in Beijing on January 27, Taiwan’s China Times newspaper reported on Friday. If it takes place, it will be the first time the event has been held since 2016, when it was suspended because of tensions between the mainland and Taiwan and debate within the KMT. It was held 11 times before then. The development represents a renewed effort by Beijing and Taiwan’s main opposition party to restore inter-party channels at a critical moment. Cross-strait relations began declining in 2016 when Tsai Ing-wen became the island’s leader and have deteriorated under her successor, William Lai Ching-te. Late last year, the People’s Liberation Army staged a round of massive military drills near Taiwan, saying they were aimed at deterring “Taiwan independence forces” and external intervention. The forum is also expected to pave the way for a meeting between newly elected KMT chairwoman Cheng Li-wun and Chinese President Xi Jinping, which some media outlets have suggested could occur as soon as March. Cheng has repeatedly expressed hopes for a face-to-face meeting with Xi and supported the idea of a strong Chinese identity and reconciliation with the mainland. She said on Friday that she would give more details about the forum on Saturday. Cheng’s deputy, KMT vice-chairman Hsiao Hsu-tsen, is expected to head the Taiwanese delegation at the forum, according to Taiwan media reports. Beijing’s Taiwan Affairs Office did not respond to a request for comment. The forum was first held in 2006 and called the Cross-Strait Economic and Trade Forum. It followed the historic 2005 meeting in Beijing between then-Communist Party general secretary Hu Jintao and then-KMT chairman Lien Chan, which resulted in a five-point consensus, including the establishment of a party-to-party communication platform. Over the following decade, proposals from the event covered a wide range of issues, including agriculture, industrial and financial cooperation, tourism and people-to-people exchanges. The forum was renamed the Cross-Strait Peaceful Development Forum in November 2016, just months after the Democratic Progressive Party took power in Taiwan. Then-KMT leader Hung Hsiu-chu took part in the gathering and met Xi before the forum as part of her trip to the mainland. Since then, there has been a lack of communication channels between the KMT and the Communist Party. There have also been no official channels between the two sides of the strait since the DPP came to power. Zhang Wensheng, deputy dean and a professor at the Taiwan Research Institute at Xiamen University, said the forum would help to ease cross-strait tensions as well as promote cross-strait exchanges. But given the KMT was not in power, “it would have little ability to resolve the fundamental political differences across the strait”, Zhang said. According to mainland cross-strait analyst Zhu Songling, the forum would be Cheng’s first effort to navigate cross-strait relations and consolidate her authority within the party. But Zhu warned that there would be few breakthroughs. “Given the timing and cross-strait political atmosphere, if the forum does go ahead, the political symbolism will far outweigh substantive administrative breakthroughs,” said Zhu, a professor at the Institute of Taiwan Studies at Beijing Union University. Beijing has repeatedly criticised Lai’s pro-independence stance and launched four large-scale military exercises since he took office in May 2024. The latest, a two-day drill dubbed “Justice Mission-2025”, was held at the end of December. On Friday, the DPP raised doubts about the event, asking what the KMT might be offering in exchange for attending the forum. Citing the KMT’s decision to block Taiwan’s defence budget in the Legislative Yuan, the DPP said: “Taiwan’s security should not be used as leverage to curry favour with the Chinese Communist Party.” Zhu also noted that, because the KMT was not the ruling party, any outcomes from the forum – such as resuming tourism or flights – could become “empty promises” if the DPP refused to implement them. KMT spokesman Niu Hsu-ting said on Friday that if the forum could be reconvened, it would mean there was still a channel for dialogue between the two parties. “The outside world should view it with a more open mind, especially given the rapidly changing international situation and rising geopolitical risks. Communication itself is necessary,” he said.

Are the Communist Party and the KMT reviving a cross-strait political channel?

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}The Kuomintang’s vice-chairman is expected to head a party delegation from Taiwan to the mainland later this month, reports say

The Kuomintang’s vice-chairman is expected to head a party delegation from Taiwan to the mainland later this month, reports say