Taipei mayor calls for less military activity at forum with Chinese officials

Taipei, Dec. 17 (CNA) Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) called for "fewer roaring sounds from vessels and planes" and stressed the importance of continued cross-strait exchanges during the opening of the Twin-City Forum in Taipei Tuesday.

In his remarks at the 15th Taipei-Shanghai Twin-City Forum that opened Tuesday morning at the Regent Taipei hotel, Chiang said that as the "democratically elected mayor of Taipei," he wanted to express his sincere hope for peace, stability and development across the Taiwan Strait.

"We need more dialogue and less confrontation ... more fishing boats lighting up the sunset and fewer roaring sounds from vessels and planes," he said, without directly mentioning China.

Chiang emphasized that exchanges are even more important during tense and difficult times because boosting understanding is important. He said he would like to thank the Shanghai side for sharing that belief.

The forum has been held annually since 2010 with the two cities alternating as the host. Last year, Chiang led a delegation of more than 100 to Shanghai. This year, the 92-member Shanghai delegation is being led by Shanghai Vice Mayor Hua Yuan (華源).

When asked by the media if his remarks about "fewer roaring sounds from vessels and planes" were a call for fewer Chinese military aircraft and vessels in the vicinity of Taiwan, Chiang did not directly answer but reiterated the importance of dialogue and exchange.

In his remarks, Hua highlighted the memorandums of understanding signed between the two cities and the achievements made by Taiwanese enterprises in Shanghai.

He noted that more than 500,000 Taiwanese people have visited the Chinese municipality so far this year, including more than 200,000 young people.

"People on both sides of the Strait have always been one family," he said, adding that frequent exchanges bring people closer together and help "make the welfare of the Taiwanese people more secure."

Hua said he would push for groups of Shanghai residents to visit Taiwan, particularly Taipei, despite the Chinese authorities largely freezing individual and group travel for over four years.

In response to Hua's remarks, Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council noted that China's Ministry of Culture and Tourism (MCT) only allows Fujian residents to visit Taiwan-held Kinmen and Matsu. Therefore, it commented that the Shanghai government weighing in on the issue raises questions over "who has the final say."

"However, the government's stance on welcoming Chinese tourists to Taiwan remains unchanged," the MAC said, adding that necessary preparations have been made and measures will be implemented when the MCT officially announces the specifics of lifting travel restrictions.

Meanwhile, protests took place outside the Regent Taipei before the forum began, with groups such as the New Power Party and Taiwan Statebuilding Party voicing opposition to China's influence and chanting slogans like "Reject United Front, Kick Out the Chinese Communist Party."

As the forum neared its conclusion around noon, a man dressed in a Winnie-the-Pooh costume suddenly rushed into the hotel in protest, accompanied by two others holding a sign that read "Remove Xi at Year's End."

Police quickly stopped the three protesters and escorted them out of the hotel.

When asked by the media about any group affiliation, the man in costume said only that he was an ordinary citizen who had come to express his opinion.