The Cabinet has appointed a veteran diplomat, Andrew Hsia, to be Taiwan’s top China policymaker.
Hsia on Monday replaced Wang Yu-chi, the former minister of the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC). Wang stepped down on February 10th following a court ruling that cleared a former deputy of leaking classified information to China. Wang said he found the ruling unacceptable and was stepping down to take responsibility.
Hsia, the former representative to India and Indonesia, is currently the Deputy Defense Minister.
In an interview with the local media on Monday, Hsia said cross-strait ties are of great importance and that taking over the MAC is a big challenge for him.
Also on Monday, 19 political appointees took office at a ceremony presided over by President Ma Ying-jeou. They include key figures such as National Security Council (NSC) Secretary-General Kao Hua-chu, Defense Minister Gao Guang-chi and Presidential Office Secretary-General Tseng Yung-chuan, among others.