China unveils 10 measures to promote Taiwan ties during KMT chair's visit

Taipei, April 12 (CNA) Chinese authorities on Sunday announced 10 policy measures targeting Taiwan, some of which appeared aimed at benefiting specific sectors such as tourism and fisheries, on the final day of Kuomintang Chairperson Cheng Li-wun's (鄭麗文) trip to China.

The 10 measures were reported earlier in the day by Xinhua News Agency, which said China's Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) had been authorized to announce them following Cheng's meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) on Friday.

The measures included plans to resume individual travel by residents of Shanghai and Fujian Province to Taiwan, and to push for the "full normalization" of direct cross-strait passenger flights to facilitate travel and exchanges between people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait.

Xinhua, the Chinese government's mouthpiece, said China would support the resumption of flights between Taiwan and Chinese cities, such as Urumqi, Xi'an, Harbin, Kunming and Lanzhou, and Kinmen County's shared use of Xiamen Xiang'an International Airport, which is still under construction.

Kinmen is a Taiwan-held outlying county located just off the coast of Fujian, with some of its islands as close as 2 kilometers from Xiamen. Matsu is another Taiwan-controlled island group off Fujian's coast.

Other proposals in the report included closer infrastructure links between Fujian and Kinmen and Matsu; easier access for Taiwanese agricultural, fishery and food products to the Chinese market; and studies on building docks and berths in certain areas to serve Taiwan's distant-water fishing vessels and facilitate the landing of their catches.

The report also said Chinese authorities would support Taiwanese small and medium-sized enterprises in China, and allow broader access on Chinese platforms for Taiwanese television dramas, documentaries and animated works deemed to have the "correct orientation" and "healthy content."

In terms of exchanges between the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the KMT, the report also outlined plans to establish "regular communication mechanisms" between the two parties, as well as a platform for bilateral youth exchanges.

The Mainland Affairs Council, Taiwan's top government agency handling cross-strait affairs, did not have an immediate response to the measures as of 2 p.m. Sunday.

The KMT, Taiwan's main opposition party, said in a news release that the 10 measures would help promote cross-strait exchanges and cooperation, align with expectations across Taiwanese society, and serve as an important boost to the peaceful development of cross-strait relations.

Quoting party Vice Chairperson Chang Jung-kung (張榮恭), the release added that the measures could be seen as "a gift" from the Chinese side to the people of Taiwan through Cheng, reflecting goodwill and sincerity and positively responding to her efforts to promote cross-strait peace and common development.

While some of the measures could potentially benefit certain sectors in Taiwan, such as tourism and fisheries, questions remain over how they could be implemented, particularly under the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government.

For example, Taiwanese authorities currently only allow Chinese tourists to visit Taiwan proper via third locations.

Any further easing of travel restrictions or expansion of flight routes would require coordination between the governments on both sides of the Strait.

Cheng is on a rare visit to China from Tuesday to Sunday at the invitation of the CCP Central Committee and Xi, who also serves as the party's general secretary.

She is expected to return to Taiwan on Sunday afternoon.