Chairman of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) Raymond Burghardt says he hopes that cross-strait communication will continue under the administration of President Tsai Ing-wen. The AIT is the United States’ de facto embassy to Taiwan in the absence of formal ties between the two sides.
Speaking to Voice of America on Wednesday, Burghardt said that Tsai has grown more flexible in her approach towards China. Burghardt said that cross-strait communication is important to help prevent misunderstandings. He also said the US regarded the return of regular cross-strait communication during the Ma Ying-jeou administration as a positive step.
Burghardt called Beijing’s recent decision to suspend cross-strait communications unfortunate. He said he hopes that Beijing will understand the importance of cross-strait communication and continue to communicate with Taiwan.