Senior US official Evan Medeiros said on Monday he hopes to hear more from Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen on cross-strait issues.
Medeiros said Tsai’s recent comments on cross-strait issues were “interesting and constructive” and he’d like to hear more about her practical approach. Tsai is the DPP candidate for the 2016 presidential election. She said her basic principle in handling cross strait relations is to “maintain the status quo”. Tsai also said she would “avoid accidents” in handling cross-strait ties and would not provoke “contradictions, confrontations or conflicts”.
At a recent Washington briefing, Medeiros said securing stability and safety in the Taiwan Strait is crucial to the US. He said the US maintains the basic principles of the Taiwan Relations Act which is to “provide Taiwan with arms of a defensive character.” The act was enacted in 1979 to maintain unofficial ties between the US and Taiwan after Washington switched diplomatic recognition from Taipei to Beijing.
Meanwhile, Medeiros approves of ruling Kuomintang Chairman Eric Chu’s upcoming visit to China. Medeiros said the US supports any cross-strait interaction that is conducted in a manner acceptable to both sides.
Medeiros also noted a recent opinion piece in the People’s Daily by the head of China’s Taiwan Affairs Office Zhang Zhijun. In the article, Zhang talked about being open to interaction and conversations with all circles of Taiwan society. Medeiros said that is an important, constructive step as Taiwan enters into its election period.