No need to 'pick a side' between U.S. and China: KMT chair

Taipei, Jan. 29 (CNA) There is no need for Taiwan to "pick a side" between the United States and China, opposition Kuomintang (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) said Wednesday, adding that while the former is a friend, the latter is "family."

Speaking at a meeting of the KMT's Central Standing Committee, Cheng said a friend once told her that the "United States was our benefactor, but the Mainland is our family."

The Republic of China (ROC, Taiwan) "will not forget the friendship of the United States after the World War II, because we are not ungrateful people," Cheng said.

At the same time, she said, "the Mainland is our family, and we won't be involved in an internecine struggle."

"We don't need to pick a side between the United States and China," Cheng said. "Cross-strait reconciliation can bring about cooperation between the U.S. and China."

Cheng's comments followed an announcement Wednesday by the KMT, saying it will send a delegation to Beijing Feb. 2-4 for an official think tank exchange with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), with the aim of fostering constructive cross-strait interaction.

The delegation will be led by Deputy KMT Chairman Hsiao Hsu-tsen (蕭旭岑) and will include Lee Hong-yuan (李鴻源), deputy chair of the KMT's National Policy Foundation think tank, and around 40 experts and scholars, the party said.

On the possibility of a meeting between the KMT chair and Chinese leader Xi Jinping (習近平) this year, Cheng said there is no need for speculation. A public announcement would be made immediately if such a meeting was confirmed, she added.

Cheng noted that before British Prime Minister Keir Starmer arrived in Beijing on Wednesday for a state visit, he said, "there is no need [for the U.K.] to choose between the U.S. and China."

The same is true for Taiwan, Cheng added.